


Unexpected Emergencies

by blueh



Category: One Piece
Genre: ANYWAYS this is the new & improved & EDITED version of UE, Gen, Luffy grows up with Whitebeard, Luffy is a Whitebeard commander, and hes a lot stronger tbh, but op has a funny way of drawing you back in, i thought i was out of the op fandom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-08
Updated: 2018-04-05
Packaged: 2018-11-29 11:06:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 79,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11439579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueh/pseuds/blueh
Summary: Luffy had been alone most of his short life, with no one to love and no one to rely on. This all changed, however, when the Whitebeard Pirates stumble upon his lonely little island and take the four-year-old boy under their wing. Who knew that the little rubber brat would become one of Oyaji's strongest commanders when he grew up? Ha. The Whitebeard Pirates sure didn't.





	1. Chapter 1

"This island is creepy," Thatch said with a smile, looking around at the overgrown trees and vines that seemed to want to latch onto the small group. Ace didn’t quite agree, but kept his mouth shut anyways. "I mean I feel like I'm being watched—I _hate_ that feeling by the way. Especially if it's another pirate crew that thinks they can take us on. Do you know how  _annoying_ that is?"

 The forest was dark and ominous, with fog licking at their feet and a chill reverberating through the air. The pirates could practically see the glowing red eyes that glared at them from the bushes. They hadn't seen any animals yet—much to Ace's disappointment—but that didn't mean that they couldn't sense their intimidating presence. In a way, the island reminded him of his old home on Dawn Island with Sabo.

_Sabo…_

Ace frowned and shook his head. He had his family; Sabo was gone. Dead. He wouldn’t have wanted Ace stuck on his death, anyways.

"Thatch, we don't need commentary at the moment, yoi." Marco said, swatting at a plant that slithered onto the pathway. Marco huffed as another branch came alive and went for their ankles. Eventually Marco reached the level of _fuck it_ and had his blue fire roared to life. It successfully scared away the blood thirsty plants for a few seconds. "We get that you need to talk all the time, but do you seriously need to talk  _all the time?"_

"Damn, Marc, that’s cold " Thatch muttered, lowering his head and sticking out his bottom lip in a pout. He huffed and crossed his arms when he got no reaction, completely ignoring the rose vine that had grabbed his arm. "Ace, you're with me on this right? Come on, buddy!"

"With you on what?" Ace didn't even glance over his shoulder as he continued to burn the island’s plants. The pirate took another step before his leg sunk into deep mud. With a low growl, Ace yanked his foot out and continued on his way with his boot now making a ' _sqee_ ' every time he stepped. "The pirates or the creepiness?" Another plant attacked them, but Ace just burned it, not really having a problem with their thorny friends because of his fire devil fruit. He huffed and muttered under his breath, "The plants are annoying as hell."

"Everything!" Thatch cried, practically throwing his hands up in the air. How come no one understood what he was trying to say? Everything he'd said was perfectly clear-in his mind anyway. He didn't seem to think that whatever he said fell death to the other pirates' ears.

"I'll admit that the pirate crew challenging pops is annoying, but this island isn't creepy." Ace kicked a giant leaf out of his path, blatantly ignoring the little voice in the back of his head that screamed _'you were one of those pirates!_ ' and rolled his eyes. Just really annoying."

"The plants are out to get me, I swear!" Thatch jumped on Marco's back without warning, causing the blonde to stumble a little. Thatch looked around wildly as if he had seen something truly horrible—which he hadn't, mind you—and dramatically cried, "Marco save me! I'm too young to die!"

Marco said nothing, his only answer was grabbing the redhead's hands and flipping him into a mud pit that was in front of them. He didn't even spare a glance at the fallen commander as he walked over him like a bridge, getting more mud on Thatch's white shirt.

Seeing Thatch's horrified face as he looked at his clothes, Ace couldn't help but let out the hysterical laughter that he'd been holding in. When he thought Marco wasn’t looking, Ace shot Thatch a thumbs-up. Without warning, the phoenix stopped walking and turned around to face Ace. "Quit encouraging him."

Thatch pushed himself off the wet ground with a groan, flicking all the excess dirt towards the incoming monster plants. His previously white outfit was now covered in a greenish-brown mixture that smelled  _awful._  Even Ace had to take a step away from his friend.

" _Marcooo_ ," Both of them complained—though Thatch’s tone had a bit more of an edge to it as he pushed himself off the ground. One pair of puppy dog eyes and another glare met the Phoenix's unwavering gaze. When Marco didn't budge, Ace sighed, giving up, and playfully shoved Thatch away from him as they continued on their impromptu adventure.

Abruptly, Marco stopped, causing the two behind him to run into his back.

“Oi, Marco, why’d you stop?” Ace asked, trying to get a better view.

Instead of answering, Marco bent down to examine what looked like a leaf. Ace raised an eyebrow at Thatch, who just shrugged, flinging a little bit of mud from his hair. Ace was about to ask his question again when Marco straightened out and pointed to a spot just a little off the trail. 

"What is it?" Thatch asked as he bent down and went to look at the place Marco pointed to. Ace didn’t see anything strange enough for Marco to show them until he noticed the dark red splotches behind a darker plant with three leaves.

"Blood." Marco said simply, his expression remained impassive.

“So?” Ace said. Thatch pushed the leaves out of the way, revealing another large puddle.  “An animal got hurt. Big deal.”

“No, Ace.” Thatch’s voice was barley above a hushed whisper. “ _Look.”_

Ace furrowed his brows and pushed the leaves out of the way to get a better look. There was a _lot_ of blood. His eyes traced the edged of the puddle before he spotted the small indents in the ground leading away from the blood. He sucked in a breath. “Are those…?”

“Footprints,” Marco said.

"Human blood?" Thatch asked, glancing around them. "I thought this island was inhabited."

"This island  _is_ uninhabited." Marco said, standing up again and resting his hands on his hips. "It's pretty much impossible for any humans to live here, or stay here for a period of time because of the flora and fauna. This is the first time I've been here myself, but I've heard about how the animals are strong enough to take out entire crews, yoi."

Ace whistled, lips curving into a smirk. "Entire crews?  That's pretty impressive. I'd like to explore this island more." The more he learned about this island, the more he was convinced that this was just a deadlier version of his home back in East Blue.

Thatch snorted, then hit Ace on the head. The fire-user glared at the cook, who in turn flicked dirt at his unsuspecting victim. "Of course  _you'd_ want to explore the island with deadly animals. Seriously Ace, where is the common sense? Were you dropped on your head as a kid? Or is the whole 'D' thing going to your head?"

Ace growled and snapped at the fourth division commander, "That shitty geezer wasn't that _nice_ to me, you know. Not to mention the fact that  _mountain bandits_  raised me _._ They don't like people very much—especially little kids who had a knack for making things explode."

"Problem child," Thatch coughed into his fist, smirking as he watched Ace turn and give him a deadly glare that could probably scare off the plants.

Marco was between the bickering pair in an instant, pushing them away from each other before they could start a fight— _spar_ , Ace would say after everything was destroyed. The Phoenix looked at Thatch directly in the eyes and said, "I don't think what Ace said about exploring the island was such a bad idea, yoi. It might give us the chance to find this person.” Ace nodded his head in agreement.

"Fine!" Thatch playfully threw his hands up in the air, grinning. The redhead bounded up from behind Ace and jabbed his finger in Ace's chest accusingly, leaving a circle of mud in the middle of his chest. "If I die, I'm blaming you, buddy."

Ace shrugged nonchalantly and smirked. "Sure, but you'll be dead."

" _Stop_." Marco's underlining threat reached both of the other commander's ears and they backed down.

Ace rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, gave a small grin to Marco, and said, "Yeah, explore. Right."

Marco's eyebrow twitched, but he didn't comment and started walking past the plant that they'd been looking at, following the small trail of blood. Ace and Thatch glanced at each other, before snickering and racing to catch up with Marco.

The trail led on for a while, longer than Ace thought possible. He didn't think they were going to find anyone alive, if they found anyone at all. It seemed impossible at this point. How much blood had this person lost? They would at least be unconscious, if not dead.

The sun was starting to set, and Ace really didn't want to have to try and find his way back to the Moby Dick in the dark. He had a feeling that the plants weren’t going to help them find a way out of this damn jungle. 

Ace was brought out of his musings by a roar that seemed to echo throughout the whole forest. Birds cried out as they fled their trees, taking to the sky. Ace felt himself shiver in excitement.

Thatch stopped, "I think I hear one of those large animals."

"The blood trail leads towards whatever that was." Marco informed the other two, gesturing to the trail they'd been following. "We should go check it out, yoi."

Both Ace and Thatch nodded eagerly, and followed the older man as they made their way through all the large plants and thick roots. They were all tense, expecting an attack at any moment. It wasn't a moment later when they all heard a high-pitched scream that vibrated in Ace's head even after it faded.

Ace stopped dead in his tracks, looking around wildly, his haki momentary forgotten. "That was a person!"

Marco gave him a glance, "What are we waiting for then, yoi?”

All three commanders found themselves racing through the plants, covering the in small scratches and other injuries as the plants eagerly grabbed onto their clothes

When the found what they were supposedly looking for, it wasn't what they expected. The first thing they noticed was the tiger, which was—admittedly—hard to miss. Standing almost as tall as a middle-aged tree, it's bright orange and black coat that glittered in the sunlight and glaring fangs made it the center of attention. From what Ace could tell it had cornered a small animal that was backed against a tree.

Then he remembered the scream and his eyes widened. No, not an animal. An animal couldn't make a sound like that. A  _person._ Probably a child, given the size.

The tiger snarled, and the kid backed further against the tree. Ace didn't know when or how, but he found his legs working on his own, running towards the giant tiger, ready to defend the kid and fry the tiger into a crisp.

"Oi!" Ace yelled at the tiger, trying to get it to back away from the kid. "Oi! You big fur ball! Over here!" He probably looked like an idiot, waving his hands in the air like a monkey. The tiger turned snarled. 

Ace took a moment to glance at the kid that was huddled against the tree. He couldn't have been older than four, and all he wore was a simple pair of shorts that were covered in dirt, scratches and blood. He had black hair and wide, innocent eyes that were terrified. In his hand, he was tightly clutching a silver pipe that was also covered in blood. He was skinny— _way_ too skinny for anyone his age—Ace could see the boy's ribs even from where he was standing.

The tiger snarled again as Ace brought his attention back to the current danger at hand. Ace couldn't help but gawk as the tiger loomed over him with drool dripping from its giant maw. Seriously, how could a  _tiger_ be this large?

“Hey, Thatch,” Ace said, slowly and carefully as he noticed the man approach. “How do you feel about cooking tiger?”

Thatch snorted, “Maybe if you don’t fry it to a crisp first. Can’t cook it if its charred to the bone.”

Ace’s grin turned feral. “I’ll try and be careful.”

The tiger glanced between the two of them, hesitating for a split second before pouncing.

Ace was surprised to say the least, when the tiger didn't go for him, but for Thatch. Thatch easily dodged the incoming attack just as the tiger crushed the ground where Thatch would've been.

“Looks like he’s your opponent now, Thatch!” Ace laughed and used the distraction to sprint towards the boy. He ignored Thatch’s call of _damn it, Ace!_ From across clearing. Ace wasn’t worried, Thatch is a cook; he knows how to deal with food.

When Ace reached the boy, his eyes were shut, his breathing was shallow and the wound on the side was still bleeding heavily, but at least he was still alive. Ace gave a sigh of relief; the kid could probably still be saved with emergency medical care. Which was back on the ship. And they were somewhat in the middle of a jungle. Lost.

_Well shit._

Sighing in frustration, the young adult ripped a piece of fabric from his shorts and gently pressed it on to the boy's bleeding wound. It wouldn't be life threatening if it had been treated right away—a simple bandage would've done wonders—but it looks like the child had been running for his life since they wound had appeared. Ace guessed that the tiger gave the kid his wound—those claws weren't for show.

The child cried out in pain and surprise when he felt something touch him, his eyes snapping open. The minute he saw Ace, he whimpered and tried to move away, but Ace's hand on his shoulder held him firmly in place.

"Hey, hey." Ace said quietly, trying not to scare the boy more than he already was. "It's okay. We're not here to hurt you. We want to help." The boy's eyes were dropping slowly from the amount of blood he lost, but they still held the same fear and defiance that Ace had seen before. The boy made a small noise and tried to shift away.

Ace snaked his hands under his small body and picked the boy up bridal style, holding him close to his exposed chest. The boy let out a gasp of surprise, opening his eyes once again to stare around him, but he didn't struggle like he had before. Instead, the boy buried his tiny head into Ace's shirtless chest, taking ragged breaths.

Ace frowned and gently shook the boy, trying as best as he could not to hurt him. "Oi. Don't drop on us just yet. Stay awake a little longer, okay?" He didn't get a response, which he _knew_ wasn't a very good sign. 

He glanced over his shoulder to see Thatch still fighting the tiger, but it was obvious who the winner was. It was more of a one-sided bead down on Thatch's part, the tiger could barley keep up. Marco was sitting in a nearby tree, watching everything but not intervening. His lazy eyes were darting all around the clearing, looking for other possible enemies.

"Marco! Thatch!" Ace hollered. They had to get out of here—they could come back later and see where the boy's caretakers were. "We need to go! Now!"

Marco simply nodded, jumping off the tree and dragging Thatch by the collar of his shirt. Thatch didn't seem very happy about this, but he didn't struggle, only crossing his arms like a five year old and sticking out his tongue and letting his feet drag on the ground as the tiger chased them.

"I was about to beat the shit out of it!" Thatch complained, "Tiger meat is delicious if you cook it properly."

"We didn't come here for a tiger." Marco said firmly, finally catching up to Ace. He glanced at the child in Ace’s arms before catching his eye and nodding. The child was unconscious now, but he was still making noises of pain every time he was jostled when Ace was running. In addition to the large wound on his side, there was also an assortment of scratches that were no doubt given to him by the island's plants and some bruises that were already starting to form. "He's in pretty bad shape, yoi."

"Of course he's in bad shape, the kid was just attacked by that monster tiger!" Thatch rolled his eyes. "That tiger wasn't weak, either."

"Yeah," Ace commented dryly, holding the boy closer to his chest. "We noticed."

"I'm  _so_ going back for it later," Ace could see practically see the gears turning in Thatch's head, possible thinking of hundreds of ways to cook tiger. "That tiger is a dead animal walking. There is  _no way_ that thing is going to see tomorrow."

"Have fun with that." Ace told him with a snort.

By now, Ace's chest had been stained red and whenever he moved it felt slick and rather disgusting. He could feel it dripping down and soaking into his pants. He hissed, “ _Shit_! How the hell is this kid still alive?”

It took around two minutes of full-blown sprinting before the three were back on the boat. Ace didn't bother to say hello, wave or even answer any questions as he ran down the long, wooden hallways of the boat towards the infirmary. He could leave Marco and Thatch to deal with the details and his pestering family.

Not even knocking, Ace burst through the infirmary door, startling some of the nearby nurses. The ship’s head doctor looked up at Ace's panting form before sighing and rolling her eyes. "You again? Come on, Ace. Don't you have anything better to do then spending time in the infirmary? I swear you visit me at least once a week. I don't have time to treat you, especially if it’s something stupid like a paper cut."

Ace glared at her, trying to catch his breath. "Not the time. Kid. Help him." Before gently placing the small child on the nearest bed.

"Oh?" The doctor raced over to the child to get a better look. A curious spark appeared in her eyes, the kind of spark that only doctors had whenever the brought in someone new to dissect. Okay, _okay_. Maybe not  _dissect,_ but that's what it looked like to Ace. "What do we have here? A new patient?" She quickly snapped on a pair of blue gloves before examining the boy's battered form. A frown creased on her face before she started ordering the nurses around her. She looked up at Ace with worried eyes. "He's in pretty bad condition. How'd you find him?"

Ace had finally caught his breath. "We found him on the island, there was this giant tiger attacking him. That's pretty much all I know other than he was pretty scared when I approached him."

She took off the cloth that Ace had put on his wound before carefully examining that. "A giant tiger, huh? I don't even want to know. You always find the craziest shit don't you, Portgas?"

"To be fair, it was Marco's fault."

"Uh-huh. _Sure_."

"Oi," Ace glared playfully at the doctor as she went back to looking the kid over, poking the wound on his side. Even unconscious, the boy squirmed. "I'm serious. It was Marco's fault! I'm the bystander here."

The doctor put two fingers to the boy’s neck, checking his pulse. The kid did nothing more than twitch once, making the doctor sigh and run her fingers through the boy's hair. The boy reacted to the touch, moving his head closer to her hand.

"He should be dead," She finally tore her eyes off the boy as another nurse grabbed him and took him out of sight. The doctor looked at Ace and gave a small, reassuring smile. "I don’t know how that kid is still alive. He’s going to need surgery, but he should be fine. _If_ he wakes up, He’ll need to rest, eat and not move around too much or else it'll re-open up his wounds. But he's young, he'll should heal fast. If he survives the next twenty-four hours, that is.”

Ace raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you going to patch him up? Work your doctor-like magic?"

"Not with you here, Flame brain." The doctor snorted, made a shooing motion with her hands and literally shoved him towards the door. He stumbled a bit before he caught himself and looked at her. "Off you go. I'll tell you if anything happens."

With a large sigh, Ace nodded and headed the rest of the distance towards the door. His finger's brushed the wood's smooth surface and he looked back at the doctor. "I trust you to help him." He said simply, meeting her gaze.

The woman nodded and grinned as she disappeared around the other door, leaving Ace to wonder what the hell had just happened to his _calm and peaceful_ day.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i should've,,,, probably mentioned that i am the original writer of this story lmfao cross posted on fan fiction! ...like four years ago but

The door shut quietly behind Marco. The shadows casted long shadows all over his body as he calmly walked up to the other—much larger—man. He looked tired, almost dragging his feet, but managed to stand straight and look as dignified as he could muster. "We didn't find anyone else on the island, Oyaji."

"Oh? So that brat was alone?" Whitebeard expected as much, but it still bothered him. A child should not live alone in somewhere as dangerous as the New World. Everyone that was considered his 'son' knew this and respected it. That's why they helped as many as they could. This was a special case, however, since there were no reported villages on the island and no one to take care of the boy. There was really only one option.

"Possibly. What do you plan on doing?" Marco sounded almost amused, though the tiredness in his voice was evident. His facade was slowly slipping from his face as he talked to one of the few people in his life that he actually trusted.

A booming laugh echoed throughout the walls. "I think you know, Marco."

Marco simply rolled his eyes fondly. There were still doubts lingering in the air that he didn't really have the heart to point out, but he _did_ want to make sure that their father was  _completely_ serious. They didn't want to end up with a brat that didn't like where he was. It would be torture for all of them. "Are you sure? He is just a child after all. He might not even want this."

"Nonsense." Whitebeard’s voice sounded much older and much wiser. Even in the poorly lit room, you could see the small twinkle in his eyes. "What child doesn't want a father?"

"Ace didn’t." There wasn't a shred of hesitation in Marco’s reply.

Another booming laugh shook the whole room. "Is that so? But I'm not changing my decision."

With a resigned sigh, the blonde turned around and allowed a small smile to grace his lips. "Alright, Oyaji."

* * *

 

The child was terrified; it wasn't hard to tell. Ace had always been bad with kids, especially kids who looked torn between attacking or running away, neither of which Ace wanted to deal with.

As soon as the boy woke up, Ace knew there was going to be trouble. Now here he was, alone in the room trying to get the child to calm down. The doctor had just laughed and told him _good luck_ and Marco and Thatch were doing other things—Thatch probably pranking someone, Marco was scouring the island for any villages or towns. Plus, Ace didn't trust anyone else with the kid—the rest of the crew wouldn't know how to deal with this kind of problem (not that Ace knew much either). This was a problem that really couldn't be fixed by swords, guns or any other sort of weapon (unless you wanted to purposely hurt the kid, which no one did) like the Whitebeard Pirates were accustomed to.

To sum it up, Ace had _no clue_ what he was doing.

Could you blame him though? It's not everyday that you find a kid on an island, hurt and alone, and bring him back to the ship only to be dumped into Ace's  _'loving'_ care. Dammit! What was he supposed to do? He was raised by  _mountain bandits._ They don't just go around teaching brats that they hate how to take care of random toddlers that they find on islands. Plus, fire wasn't that nice of an element unless you want to get burned. Ace had yet to hurt his family with his abilities and he certainly didn't want to start now.

"Hey," Ace tried for his 'nicest' voice. The least he could do was  _try_ and talk to the kid, right? Maybe he could set up a treaty of peace; he doesn't cry and Ace doesn't burn his mouth together (as if he'd do that, he'd not that cruel, but the thought did come to his mind once or twice). "Calm down. It's okay. We aren't going to hurt you."

The child only backed up further on the bed, pushing his back against the wall. Ace didn't know if the boy registered what he said, or even if he  _understood_ what he said.

It honestly wouldn't surprise him if the child didn't know how to speak. He was so damn  _small_. How old was he, two? Maybe four, Ace wasn't really good with ages. Or children. Or anything other than battle and hunting.

The fire-user had to hold back a sigh. He knew that this was going to be difficult the moment the child woke up. Hell, he was having nightmares about what he was possibly going to tell this kid's parents (if they found any). Maybe something along the lines of, " _Hey I almost watched your child get eaten by a giant tiger and we brought him to the world's most powerful man to help him and stuff. Anyways, here you go, have him back now."_

Then a frown creased his face. Did this child even  _have_ parents? It wouldn't be the first time that Ace had met a homeless child and he never really thought it would be the last, but he did have to wonder where the child came from. Abandoned or not, who would just leave a four-year old boy to roam a dangerous island like that? The boy was lucky that he wasn't eaten in the first two or three minutes.

_Ace_  even had trouble walking through the man-eating plants and animals that constantly watched you. How would a normal person—no, a  _child—_ feel? Like shit, probably. He wondered how many times the child was attacked by the island and how much damage did it really do? He wasn't worried about the physical aspect as much. No, Ace was much more worried about the mental damage that an experience like that could cause.

Then he thought about his own 'grandpa', Garp. What had that crazy old shit done to him when he was a kid? Ace couldn't even count the number of times he was hit on the head, thrown off a cliff or thrown into the ocean  _when he couldn't swim._ Maybe this kid's mom or dad was like that as well. Hell, maybe they were even worse than that. If they were, Ace's heart went out to the boy.

. . . Wait. He was assuming too much.

He needed to focus; he still had a terrified four-year-old to look after, right? After all, the moment he showed signs of waking, the doctor dragged him into the infirmary and demanded that he watch over the child and calm him down if needed. Didn't she know that fire was generally not used to clam people down? The best he could do was knock him out again but he didn't really think that was a great idea considering the minimal trust level the boy had for them now. How would he react if Ace attacked him? The brat wouldn't take it well; Ace could guarantee that.

Ace had wanted to complain, oh _yes_ , he had wanted to complain  _a lot_  but that woman was about as stubborn as a mule (maybe more). Once look from her was enough to send a zebra towards a lion and beg to be eaten (though most of Oyaji's doctors and female nurses were like this). Honestly, how did Oyaji _get_ all the ladies? And the feisty ones at that. He was like a woman beacon, being old didn't seem to hinder him that much. The fire-user shuddered to think of Oyaji as a young and handsome man. It just didn't fit.

Now here he was, stuck with babysitting the very kid that he was losing sleep over. This time, the sigh did escape his mouth and he reached out to stroke the boy's hair, not really thinking things through. Hadn't he paid attention to the warning signs? He should have listened to his gut that screamed ' _don't do it'_  because, damn, he made contact all right, but it wasn't the positive outcome that he had thought would happen in his head.

The brat had  _bit_ him and—goddamnit—it  _hurt._

"Let me go!" Ace yelped, more in surprise than actual pain, and tried to pry the boy off him, but the boy had a grip of steel. The chocolate brown eyes glared at him, though the fear was still apparent. Ace could tell by the way this kid moved that everything that he's doing was purely on the instinct and survival skill that he'd no doubt picked up on the island.

"Come on, you brat," Ace growled, annoyed. He could've just turned into fire, but there was a large chance that he'd burn the kid's mouth if he did and the last thing he wanted was to deal with hurting one of the doctor’s patients. He'd end up in the emergency room.

He shuddered just imagining what they'd do to him.

"Please let go?" He tried the gentler and calming approach. Letting his glare soften, he looked at the boy with big puppy dog eyes that could even get Marco to do a backflip. Okay—that was a joke; there was no way in hell that Marco would do a backflip for him.

After a few more minutes of gentle persuasion, Ace gave up. He sat back in his chair, and let out a large, annoyed sigh. This really wasn't his day was it?

 "You're aren't letting go, are you?" Ace accused the youth. He wanted his hand back! Besides, it was already starting to bleed and sting to a point that made it uncomfortable to move.

The boy shook his head in defiance, letting some of the fear fade from his eyes. The fire-user supposed it as because he didn't try and hurt the brat and instead choose other ways of getting through to him. Ace was glad that he got a response at the very least. He wasn't sure if the boy was able to understand what he was trying to say to him. This could've been  _so_ much worse if he couldn't speak. Ace shuddered to think about what they'd do. He didn't know how well the boy could understand them, but at least they got somewhere right? They didn't have much, but it was a start.

Ace always hated starts.

Ace put his elbow on his knee, leaning up closer to the boy before resting his head on his free hand. "Can you  _please_ let go? I use this hand a lot." A once again tried to wiggle his hand free but the child's mouth just clamped down even harder. Ace glared at the boy and the boy just glared right back, not backing down once.

Ace was surprised to say the least—very few people could stand up to his glare but here he was, facing down a four-year-old boy and  _losing._ Losing was not a vocab word in Ace's book (not that he knew many vocab words to begin with) especially to little kids with big attitudes.

"Why couldn't you have bitten Marco's hand?" Ace continued to complain, unaware of the loud footsteps outside of the room. The stinging pain had dulled to an annoying throb for now and for some reason every time Ace felt his heart beat, his left ear twitched. Another annoyance to add to his long list. "I bet his would taste better. Like chicken. You know that he's a firebird, right? A phoenix. It's basically a turkey with blue fire. He also has this weird hair that looks like a pineapple. You like pineapples, right? Okay. We have a plan. Go bite Marco."

The child didn't even twitch, just sitting in the same spot, not moving. Ace was vaguely aware that he was ranting about things that really didn't make sense and in the back of his mind he wondered if the boy had rabies.

"Let go alreadyyyyyy." The fire-user's voice was starting to come out as an annoyed wine. It's not like he cared; no one else was in the room other than the four-year-old who apparently wants to eat him. Cannibalism. Who would've thought? If he knew that the inhabitants of this monstrous island were cannibals then they would've avoided this whole mess all together.

"Can't even take care of a kid, yoi?"

"Marco!" Ace cried out happily, turning around as fast as he could. Maybe his friend could help him pry this brat off of him, right? Or even better, the brat will lose interest in him and go try and eat Marco instead! "Help me." But for now he'd settle with any help he could get.

Marco gave him and unimpressed yet disapproving look that only Marco could do. The Phoenix walked up to the boy and sat on the bed nest to him. The child gave him a wary glance, but didn't let go of Ace's hand. Marco looked like he was suppressing a smirk and ruffled the boy's hair like Ace had tried to do before.

The only difference was Marco didn't get bit, much to Ace's disappointment.

"Stubborn little thing, aren't you?" Marco allowed a rare, soft smile to appear on his lips. A calming gesture. Ace frowned a little. Why was Marco so good at stuff like this? Whenever Ace tried to be nice to kids, he either got rocks thrown at his head or he gets bit. Children _hated_ him and he didn't necessarily like children.

"Come on now," Marco's hands went under the child's stomach to scoop him up, bringing Ace's hand with him. Ace frowned and once again shook his hand to hopefully get the boy to let go. It didn't work. "Let go of Ace. He probably doesn't taste great, doesn't he, yoi?"

"Oi, oi. Marco. Rude." Ace shot his friend a warning look that clearly said 'don't test me right now I'm being bitten by a four-year-old and I'm not happy'. At first he'd been worried for the shitty brat and this is what he gets? No, Ace wasn't very happy. He was going to make this clear to everyone that's around him.

But the words did have the affect that Ace had hope for initially; the boy gave a wide eyed look at Marco—almost as if he expected to be attacked—and let go of Ace's hand. Instantly Ace was rubbing his new wound, glaring at pretty much everything that moved and made noises. His 'savior' was no exception.

He stood up from his chair with a grunt and went to the first aid kit. Ace took out the alcohol and started to disinfect his hand, ignoring the annoying sting, then wrapped a white bandage around it. He glanced back at the kid who was quietly sitting in Marco's lap looking uncomfortable; tension ran though the air and Ace thought the black haired brat was about to run away.

Ace gave the boy a criticizing look as he shut the cabinet and walked back to the bed in order to the kneel straight in front of the small child. His grey eyes bore into the wide brown ones of the child and said in the most serious yet gentle voice he could muster up, "That wasn't very nice, you know."

The boy gave him an innocent look like he didn't know what Ace was taking about. Ace snorted and stood up, stretching his arms over his head. "Smartass."

Marco rolled his eyes, the lazy expression coming back to his face. "Ace quit harassing the kid. I bet he's had enough shit for a while."

"But he bit me," Ace's lips formed into a pout, his eyes shinning with something akin to hurt. Why was it his fault? Why was the Phoenix scolding him? The kid started it! It's not like he  _wanted_ to be bit by a four-year-old that might or might not have rabies.

" _Ace._ "

* * *

 

Whitebeard hummed as he looked upon the three figures in front of him. Two of them were his sons that had always made him so proud and the other was the child that Whitebeard was not-so-secretly wishing for him to join his family. It didn't matter if he knew the boy or not; _everyone_ deserved a family.

That was his wish; his dream. To have a family. Some might laugh and call him stupid and idiotic, but they knew nothing. They'd just snort at the idea and say something like, 'why would the strongest man in the world want  _that?_  How pathetic!'

Whitebeard would laugh in their faces and tell them that they were a hundred years too young to understand (because they were; it wasn't hard to see it in their eyes.) He'd encountered thousands of men and none of them had understood the need for family. They ones that did were his sons.

But this child, a mere toddler, knew more about it then all of those idiots combined.

He  _knew_ it hurt to be alone. He  _wanted_ a family. Whitebeard could see it in the child's eyes. He was  _alone_ and it was  _hurting him._ Because for some reason, this child knew that being alone was worse than being hurt.

They said that they would heal his outside wounds, so why not heal his heart as well?

The child of his thoughts was currently in Marco's arms, looking up at the giant man with awe and a little bit of fear but there was that spark of curiosity that caught Whitebeard's attention. The giant could understand the fear; he'd scared even some of his bravest sons, but the fact that he was openly  _curious_ was special. Was unique. How strange.

His eyes reminded Whitebeard of when he met Ace. Ace wasn't scared either. Though, he wasn't curious either. Ace had one mindset at the time; _kill_. He'd probably been raised like that, though Whitebeard didn't know. Didn't care. It was his sons past and he'd already shared more than enough information.

The giant's eyes wandered to his black-haired son, analyzing him. Whitebeard knew his sons well. He knew their moods, how they reacted. The man _knew_  that something was wrong the moment the fire-user had walked in, though it was already painfully obvious. He could practically  _feel_ the boy's emotions radiate in waves. Annoyance, anger, and overall he was just in a very pissy mood.

Whitebeard noted the newly wrapped bandage on his son's hand and gave him a questioning look, though on the inside, he already knew where it came from. Ace's eyes flicked towards the boy in Marco's arms then back again with narrowed eyes, giving Whitebeard all the information that he needed.

He couldn't help the smirk that formed on his face. The boy was already causing trouble, huh? And to think that they didn't even know his name.

"Brat," Whitebeard addressed the kid like he did everyone else, he might've been young, but he wasn't an exemption. With a lazy eye roll, Marco set the boy on the ground giving him a gentle push forward. The boy stumbled before he caught himself, staring up at the giant man with an unblinking owlish gaze. "What's your name?"

The kid didn't answer for several seconds. Whitebeard worried that the rumors were true; the boy didn't even know  _how_ to speak. Maybe he didn't even understand them?

"Luffy," The boy muttered after a while, awkwardly shifting his feet and breaking eye contact with Whitebeard to stare at the ground. Whitebeard let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding in. So he _could_ speak.

Whitebeard gave the child a small smile, bending over and gesturing for him to come closer. Luffy lifted his head from the ground, hesitating for only a moment before he padded over to Whitebeard's leg and looked up at the man that towered over him.

Using only one huge arm, Whitebeard scooped up the tiny figure and place him on his leg. The boy let out a yelp of surprise, but he was soon quiet again.

"Luffy?" Whitebeard hummed, closing his eyes and leaning back in his seat. He could feel the boy's eyes on him and he cracked open his own. Luffy tilted his head to the side and nodded in confirmation. With a smile, Whitebeard grinned and continued. "Well then, Luffy, where are your parents?" He knew the answer of course; it was made painfully obvious by the boy's beaten form.

He was skinny, frightfully so, as if he hadn't eaten in a long time. Small scars covered his entire body and though they were small, they were still slightly worrisome. His black hair was covered in dirt, though it wasn't matted like Whitebeard expected it to be. Ace had even said that the boy had something wrapped around a rather fresh injury as if it were a homemade bandage.

Little Luffy looked confused, even going as far as tilting his head to the side. Parents? The phrase confused him. He knew what the word meant, though he didn't know  _what_ exactly parents were. He didn't have any parents. Or anyone for that matter. He had been alone from before he could remember. Though he did have flashes. Sometimes of the water, a storm, and even a figure. A beautiful figure. Someone with blonde hair that seemed to  _radiate_ warmth. Luffy wanted that warmth. He shook his head at the giant man and stilled.

Thought so. "Do you have any family looking after you?"

"No," The kid looked miserable like he was remembering a painful memory. His eyes were clouded and he looked down at his hands, twisting them. "Alone."

Whitebeard noticed that Ace and Marco had frowns on their faces as well. "Is that so? So no one is looking after you?"

"No," Came the same reply. "Alone."

Whitebeard hummed, thinking his decision over. If a child were to join them . . . How would the other commanders and crewmates react? Whitebeard wouldn't consider the boy weak, but there was no way that a four-year old could hold his own against the people that challenged him everyday. They'd have to train him. Protect him.

But then again, that was what family was for.

The giant smiled, ruffling Luffy's raven locks. The boy looked up, his eyes rather wide. "How would you like to join us?  _We_ could be your family."

Marco look impassive (though he already knew about this, so it wouldn't really surprise him) but Ace's eyes widened impossibly wide. "But Oyaji—!"

"Hush, brat." Whitebeard commanded, not in the mood for interruptions. He continued to look into Luffy's eyes, nothing else. Luffy had to say yes. He had to choose on his own. They couldn't be a family if the boy didn't want one. "It's the boy's decision."

"Family?" The four-year-old almost sounded wishful as he gripped Whitebeard's pants tightly. The boy was tense; guarded. "I don't have a family."

"You could," Whitebeard told him gently. There was no way they were just going to leave the boy on this island to fend for himself like he had to before but couldn’t take in a child who didn't want to be taken away. If they left him on the island, Whitebeard doubted he'd live to six years old—If Marco, Ace and Thatch hadn't found him then there was a big chance that even the best doctors in the world wouldn’t be able to save him. "We could be your family."

"I want a family," Luffy said in a childish voice, looking up with big brown eyes. Whitebeard couldn't help but smile and ruffled the boy's hair with his thumb. Looking into eyes so young—so innocent sent a warm feeling throughout his whole body. "You be my family?"

The smile that felt like it would never leave Whitebeard's face appeared. He stood up, carrying the boy with him to the upper deck. "Of course, Luffy. We'll be your family. Always."


	3. Chapter 3

The news spread like a wildfire. A new brother? A  _kid?_ The residents of the  _Moby Dick_ didn't know what to make of the situation.

There had been rumors, of course. It’s hard for rumors to _not_ spread, especially with all the commanders seemingly busy. They’d heard of the boy— “Did you know he defeated a tiger all on his own?!” “A kid? No way!”— heard that Oyaji took a liking to him and offered him a family. They were familiar with that, of course. All of them needed a family and Oyaji was always there to provide. But for a child… Well, it was a new experience for everyone. They were _pirates,_ not babysitters.

But that didn’t stop them from crowding around the infirmary, trying to get a peak at their newest brother.

The commanders didn’t have the heart to tell them to stop.

 

* * *

 

 

They thought it would be hard to accept a younger brother on the ship. After all, the New World was a dangerous place. The commanders assured the crew that they would handle it, but everyone was still worried.

Who was going to protect the brat when someone attacked? Who was babysitting to make sure he didn’t hurt himself? To make sure he ate properly? He was, after all, just a child. The crew didn’t know how to handle children.

It took a while—about two months—for some to even come into terms that they would now be raising this brat. That being said, none were complaining. The boy had managed to worm his way into all of their hearts

So when they were attacked? No problem, they would protect him. Found him wandering the Moby Dick lost and confused? They would guide him to one of the commanders. Found him in a dangerous situation? They would save him. They would protect him until he was old enough to protect himself.  He was their little brother! 

And they would always have his back. 

 

* * *

 

"GET BACK HERE!" That was Ace. Everyone's heads swiveled in the direction where a loud crash was heard, followed by a squeal. Not know what to make of the situation, the pirates only watched as a fun-sized blur of black and red raced past them and hid behind Oyaji's head, oblivious to everything around him.

Another loud crash was heard and Ace raced up the steps like the blur had. Though, unlike the mystery creature, Ace did notice all the stares him was getting but simply ignored them.

He stopped right in the middle of the deck so the could all get a good look at while Ace was so angry. Several commanders had to hold in pearls of laughter.

It seemed as if their youngest brother decided to play connect-the-freckles.

"Luffy, get your ass out here  _now."_ Ace growled, glaring at Whitebeard's legs. Two curious, brown eyes popped out from the side, looking at Ace with fear. "This is  _permanent_ marker! Do you even know what permanent means? It doesn't come off!"

"But Ace looks pretty," Luffy looked away shyly, giving everyone his _'I'm innocent'_ look. He usually does when he knows he's in trouble but doesn't want to get caught, even if everyone knows it's already him.

The surrounding pirates couldn't help it; they finally burst out into full-blown laughter, some even falling to the deck clutching their sides. Fire raced along Ace's shoulders as he glared daggers at everyone that sat on deck. Sadly, it didn't look as threatening when he has what looked like a crudely drawn flower on his left cheek.

"Quite the trouble maker, aren’t you?" Whitebeard said with a smile as he scooped up the child that stubbornly refused to let go of the giant's leg in fear that he was going to die a horrible, painful death by the hands of his new friend.

"But Oyaji," Whitebeard smiled at the named the boy used and stroked his hair. It was hard not to, after all his eyes looked just like a puppy's. "Ace sleep on floor and he cold!" The child's lips formed into a pout. "So marker wake him up."

“Oh that’s a load of _shi_ —”

"You drew on his face to wake him up?" Whitebeard raised an amused eyebrow, cutting Ace off. The boy vigorously nodded his head. "You know that he doesn't get cold, right? Ace is made of fire."

Said fire-man stalked off after he realized that he wouldn’t be getting to the child any time soon. Whitebeard watched as the rest of his sons snickered, nudging and pointing at his face. Vista whistled at him right before he disappeared below deck.

Bringing his attention back to Luffy, he watched as the boy tilted his head to the side. "Ace made of fire?"

Whitebeard laughed. "He ate a Devil Fruit. You know what a devil fruit is, don't you brat?"

The child shook his head, looking up at Whitebeard with eyes that held such curiosity that it made it hard not to just straight out tell the child what they were. But no, sadly Luffy wouldn't understand him if he gave the standard definition of a Devil Fruit. "They're these fruits that taste really bad," Whitebeard stuck out his tongue to prove his point making Luffy giggle. "And they give you powers."

"Power?" The boy leaned eagerly towards Whitebeards, wanting to hear more. "What powers?" The boy was leaning so far forward that he fell flat on his face. Rubbing his nose, Luffy quickly composed himself, his cheerful expression never changing.

"Like Ace’s fire, or sometimes its animals like—"

"Like a Tiger Lord?" Whitebeard had no clue what a 'Tiger Lord' was but nodded his head anyways.

"Like a Tiger Lord," Whitebeard agreed.

The boy seemed to ponder this idea for a few minutes before he asked Whitebeard in a hesitant voice, "Like rubber, too?"

"Rubber?" Why rubber of all things? "Yes, I guess that there is a possibility of a rubber devil fruit."

"Ne," The boy seemed to be taking this topic very seriously. A little too seriously for the giant's liking. He knew something was up; something was bothering his child. "Devil fruit… bad?"

"Why would you say that?" Whitebeard made sure that Luffy was looking directly into his eyes. He needed to know or else this piece of information might get him killed later. "Just because a person has a devil fruit doesn't mean that they're bad, brat. It just means that they're special."

Tears appeared in the brat’s eyes. Whitebeard had to wonder how this conversation took such a dark turn.

"Said they bad," Luffy said in a childish voice, seeming to recall words. "Bad. Go die."

Now Whitebeard was even more confused. Why would someone tell a child that? Then another though struck him; how did Luffy have human contact? Wasn't he abandoned? Thoughts swirled around in his head as he stroked his mustache. The words weren’t uncommon, especially in the Blues, but for a child to hear them… "Why would someone say that to you, Luffy?"

"Um," The boy seemed to be thinking of the right words as he fidgeted uncomfortably on Whitebeard's large lap. There was a silent pause before Luffy spoke up again. "Rubber."

"Rubber?"

Slowly, the boy held out a finger and grabbed it, causing it to stretch to an impossible length. Whitebeard sat back in his chair, not as surprised as he thought he'd be. So the brat ate a devil fruit, huh? That would explain the interest of the topic and even the reason someone might say stupid things to a four-year-old.

Allowing the grin that he'd wore before to appear again, Whitebeard pulled the boy in for a hug. Luffy stiffened in his arms as if he ever surprised at the touch. Maybe he was. Whitebeard didn't know the boy's past and nor did he care. This child was his son.  

"Did you think we'd treat you differently because of a silly thing like that?" Whitebeard asked softly. He felt Luffy nod into his chest and a sigh escaped his lips. The giant man knew about this, he'd even had sons who were insecure about their devil fruit power for fear of separation from others. Once, a long, long time ago Whitebeard himself had had that same fear.

"Luffy," Whitebeard pulled away and made sure the boy's eyes were locked with his. "You're our family, we're not going to treat you differently just because you're special."

Luffy smiled— a real one this time— and wiped the upcoming tears from his eyes. "Thanks, Oyaji."

Whitebeard laughed, ruffling the boy's hair once more. "Of course, brat."

 

* * *

 

 

“Izo! Izo! IzoIzoI _zoIzo_ —”

“ _What_ , brat?” Izo turned to snap at their newest addition it had been almost six months now and not only had Luffy adapted to ship life well, his vocabulary and grammar were also improving. It was much easier to understand what he wanted when he could tell everyone. The small boy bounded up to him, looking up with wide curiosity.

“Whatcha doing?”

“It’s _what are you_ , not _whatcha_ ,” Izo corrected automatically before shaking his head with a grin. He pulled the ropes down a bit more, shouting orders at his division. “I’m adjusting the sail. There’s a storm coming, but Grand Line weather is always unpredictable so we’re making sure that nothings happening.”

“Ohhhhh,” the boy said, looking the other crew members as they raced around deck.

“Hard to port!” one man shouted.

“What port?” Luffy asked, tilting his head to the side.   
  
“No one has taught you that, yet?” Izo frowned. “I’m surprised. You’ll need to know about that stuff if you’re gonna live on a boat.” Izo pointed over to the left-hand side of the Moby Dick. “That’s port, the other side is starboard,” he pointed towards the front of the boat, “That’s the bow and the back is the aft.”

“Just say right ‘n left?” Luffy scrunched his face up in confusion, not understanding.

Izo laughed. “Because it’s confusing! Your right and left are different than my right and left because I’m facing you. Starboard and port are based on where that bow and the aft are, so we know which side to go to.”

“Ohhhh, okay!” the child grinned up at him. “Hey, Izo?”

“Is today twenty questions?” Izo really didn’t mind having the brat out there, though. He was a welcome distraction to otherwise mundane duties.

“Why do you wear makeup?”

“Oh?” Izo grinned at him. He’s heard this question a lot over the years—sometimes good, sometimes bad—but he didn’t sense any malice in Luffy’s voice. He didn’t even know if the kid had a mean bone in his body. “Because I like it and it makes me pretty.”

Luffy nodded in agreement, seemingly lost in thought. Jiru and Ace had wandered up to the top deck to help out, it seemed, as they approached. Luffy turned and glanced at the newcomers before giving a wide smile, “Jiru should wear makeup too!”

“Ehhhh?” the commander looked confused. “Why me?”

“Izo said it makes him look pretty so maybe it’ll make you look pretty too!”

Ace and Izo chocked on their laughs as Jiru floundered around, not quite sure how to respond. Eventually, neither could hold in their laughter as Jiru’s face turned more and more red. The fourteenth division commander sighed before racing over and picking the brat up.

“Wow, fast!” Luffy said happily right as the commander began to mercilessly tickle him. The boy shrieked in laughter. “No! No _nono_! Tickles! Want down!”

“What was that, brat?” Jiru asked, but never stopped tickling.

“Sorry!” Luffy wheezed.

Jiru seemed hesitant, but eventually stopped his tickle attack and set the boy on the ground. Izo watched as he laughed, grinning brightly up at Jiru (seriously, how was that man so good with kids?) before running off in another direction, probably to find more trouble.   
 

* * *

 

It took almost a year for the Moby Dick to settle back to a normal schedule. From Luffy's arrival to the fact that Thatch had seemed to adopt the kid as his apprentice (he was oddly good at sneaking around), things were rarely peaceful anymore. But for some reason today was oddly quiet.

There was not running, no screaming, no giggling and overall nothing but the sound of the waves as the slammed against the hull of the ship and the idle chatter of the crew. Of course the crewmembers were suspicious, it was rarely this quiet but they can't say that they didn't enjoy it.

Now five years old, Luffy proved to be quite a handful when he wanted to be. In fact, just yesterday the boy and Thatch had been playing a simple game of tag until Thatch had cornered the kid. Luffy, being the idiot he was, saw not way to escape the 'evil man's' grasp other than jumping off the ship. Thatch had to jump in afterwards and both came up smiling like they'd just had the best time ever until Thatch realized that his hair was ruined so he started yelling at the boy for being reckless.

So they crew couldn't say the were surprised when Luffy came running up on the deck, his cheeks inflated as if something were shoved in his mouth and immediately hid behind Namur's legs, breathing rather heavily. It was suspicious, yes, but at the moment they were happy that nothing was exploding or randomly catching on fire.

Namur simply raised an eyebrow, looking at Luffy with slight curiosity. What was it this time? Maybe he raided the kitchen like he always does. But then again, he usually won't go hide behind someone's legs unless it was a bigger prank than that. Most of the time, it was Ace storming up on deck, his face pained, covered in whip cream, covered in sparkles, covered in paint, covered in feathers, covered in honey or anything else that was in his short reach.

But today Luffy had apparently decided to mix it up a little.

"WHERE IS THE BRAT?" Thatch's voice bellowed from below deck. The boy in question squeaked, terrified of Thatch's wrath, and pressed himself harder into Namur's legs burying his face into his jeans. Namur snorted, though he was secretly happy that it wasn't Ace this time. The last prank didn't have a happy ending when Marco had to tackle Ace so he wouldn't throw Luffy overboard.

There was a loud boom as Thatch jumped onto the deck, pissed and . . . pink. Everywhere, coving the commander head to toe was covered in pink glitter. His hair wasn't neat and his strange hairstyle wasn't like it normal was. Instead it was loose, free and yes, pink.

Namur chuckled, looking directly down at the boy who stood perfectly still as if Namur's leg was the perfect camo after he'd pulled a big stunt. "Luffy, what did you do?"

Swallowing whatever was in his cheeks (Namur didn't really want to know) the kid looked at him, his dark hair flopping in his face. "Thatch is pretty pink."

"Why?" Namur had a smile on his face as he was trying to hold back a laugh that would no doubt get the cook mad at him as well. Luffy had this strange habit of either drawing on the commander's faces (Izo was  _pissed_ when he was the victim), painting them different colors, or messing with their personal supplies. Afterwards he would always claim that he was just trying to make them 'pretty'.

Namur was pretty sure it started when Izo showed Luffy how he put on makeup. Afterwards, Luffy wanted to try it on basically everyone else but since makeup wasn’t exactly a readily available source… the brat made due with what he had.

"Because he sparkles," The child looked down at his hands, but Namur couldn't help but think the boy was proud of what he did. Ace was completely out of the world when he was asleep, so he was an easy target. Thatch was much harder to trick, considering that he was a veteran pranker himself and had a good nose for things like up and coming pranks.

"Oi! Thatch!" Haruta called out to her fellow commander as Thatch stormed around deck demanding to know where Luffy was so he could wring his rubber neck. Namur watched with mild curiosity as the cook's sharp gaze landed on the swordswoman. "Did your own  _apprentice_ out smart you? Really? A five-year-old was able to do this to you?" Haruta barked a laugh and slapped her knee, mockingly. "Oh, this is too good!"

"Shut up!" Thatch's glare sharpened even more. "He made something pink explode in my bathroom and  _then_ he took my hair gel hostage!" By the end of the sentence Thatch was starting to wine, flipping his hair lifelessly. "I  _need_ my hair gel! Oh! And after he grabbed my hair gel the little shit then had the nerve to raid the kitchen and steal a whole chicken!"

Namur looked back at the child setting at his legs. Sure enough, the brat had the giant bottle of Thatch's hair gel locked firmly in his hands. How had Namur not noticed that? The commander leaned down and picked the boy up looking at him with a smirk on his face, showing off his shark teeth. "You should probably go and give Thatch back his hair gel before he kills everyone on deck."

Luffy pouted, his bottom lip sticking out. "But then Thatch won't be pretty and he'll take away my meat."

"You guys are too loud," Ace, who probably fell asleep next to the mast sometime before Thatch arrived, muttered, turning on his side. There was a snore before the man grumbled, "Luffy don't draw on my face—"

"YOU!" Apparently Thatch had found Luffy. "Give me back my hair gel!"

"No!" Luffy squeaked and tried to get out of Namur's iron grip. Seeing that Namur wasn't going to let go of him, Luffy looked up at the fish man and gave him his best puppy-dog eyes. "I don't wanna die."

Storming up to the pair, Thatch snatched the bottle from Luffy's tiny hands and glared at the five-year-old boy who was still in Numar's arms. "Try that again and it'll be the last thing you do."

"Thatch looks pretty?" The child offered, hoping to calm down the raging brunette.

“Damn right I do,” frowning, Thatch took the child out of Namur's arms and carried him back below deck, scolding the poor child how it wasn't nice to prank his mentor and to  _never_ steal his hair gel again.

And everyone else never saw this happen, fearing for their own lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> when i was editing this i like. honestly described luffy as a fuzz ball. like. somewhere in my middle school mind i thought that was a good descriptive term for a human being. how the fuc k


	4. Chapter 4

Running into a child wasn't on the pirate captain's list of things to do. He'd never had the patience to deal with children; hell, he even killed his own son since he couldn't handle the whining! But this child, the one that had been following the pirate group for around an hour, was the single most annoying thing that anyone on his crew had ever experienced.

At first, they tried to ignore that child's blabbering about being lost and whatnot, focusing on re-socking supplies and hoping that the child would run into his mom or dad and  _leave._ Sadly, no such thing happened so the small boy continued to follow them until the pirate captain snapped, turning around and  _snarling_ at the boy. "Don't you know who we are, you damn brat?!"

Instead of flinching and running away screaming like the man expected the child to do, the boy just blinked up at him happily, offering a smile that seemed to split his face in two. "Not a clue!" He said happily. It was almost like he didn't know how to be scared (which wasn't far from the truth).

His crewmates fanned out on either side of him, grinning wickedly and hoping for their _evil pirate faces_ to convince the kid that they were dangerous and should be treated as such.

"I'm a pirate captain!" he announced so everyone on the street could hear. Those who did hear quickly left to find shelter. Not one claimed the brat. "I'm a wanted man, you little shit. We're New World pirates, ya see? Now, scram!"

Again, the brat surprised him. "You have a bounty?!" he was jumping up and down, eye sparkling in the sunlight. "Really?! How much?!"

"Tch," the pirate captain lashed out, aiming to kick the boy to the sand. He missed by only a few centimeters, but he did succeed on making the boy lose his balance and fall on his butt. "That shouldn't concern you right now." He whispered, low and dangerous. A few of his crewmates chuckled, egging him on. "What should concern you is that I've killed before, brat. I've killed men, woman  _and_ children. You will be no exception." he unsheathed his sword. “We told you to leave, but you didn't listen. Let me have the _honor_ of learning your name before you become a sea king streaks, hmm?”

Happy laughter rang throughout the air. "I'm Luffy!" the child pushed the sword away from his face without a care. "Nah, is that a real sword? It looks a little different than Haruta or Vista's, but it's still sharp, right?"

"Of course it’s real.” The pirate captain flicked his wrist, causing the sword to reflect the light. "You like it, yeah?"

Luffy nodded, eye filled with child-like curiously. "Uh-huh! It's really pretty!"

"Get a good look at it, then." The pirate captain advised, raising the sword above his head, ready to chop the child in half. "For it will be the last thing that you'll ever see."

 _"Luffy!"_ A new voice rang out through the empty street, causing the pirate captain to momentarily stop mid swing, eyes flashing angrily.

"Ace!" And just like that the child was gone. The pirate captain and his crew blinked in confusion. Where the hell did he go? The turned around just in time to see the child being picked up by young man—he had no shirt on, just an orange hat and some shorts along with combat boots and a knife.

The man—Ace was it? —glared at all of them, sending chills down their spine. "And what," he said in a dangerously low voice as he took a step toward them, hand resting on a knife at his waist. "Do we have here?"

"I found this guy and followed him here." Luffy informed happily, throwing his arms around the man’s neck. Ace's glare never once wavered, but his posture did relax somewhat. "He's really funny! He even showed me his sword!"

"Hmm," Ace hummed, shifting the boy so he was handing off his back. Dark grey eye had the pirate captain sweating buckets. "It looks like he was trying to hurt you, Luffy."

"Ehhh? But the were nice to me." Luffy cocked his head to the side as if he was truly confused. The captain had the sudden urge to slam his head against a brick wall. Wouldn't a normal five-year-old be running to their mother crying by now? That's how the captain always assumed kids to be like; snotty brats that completely depend on their mothers.

"I don't think beheading you is considered nice." Ace responded with a thoughtless shrug. "Besides, they look pretty stupid. Maybe they're lost? You'd think pirates would clear out of town as soon as they hear Oyaji's name."

"Oi!" The captain suddenly yelled out, tried of being annoyed and even more tired of being insulted and ignored. "Put the kid down and hand him over or you'll die with him!”

Some dangerous flashed in Ace's eyes. Something feral. He spun around to face the captain with a full-blown glare printed all over his face. The captain had always thought that freckles were suppose to make a person look childish, but nothing about this man screamed childish at the moment. " _Never_."

Ignore his mind screaming at him to run away, the pirate raised his sword out in front of him. It was supposed to be threatening, but the man in front of him didn't even flinch. "Is that so? Bring it!"

Ace simply responded by placing the child down by his feet and instructing him not to move before his shoulder's erupted into white-hot flames.

Well _fuck_. This man was a devil fruit user, huh?

Behind him, several of his crewmates gasped and stumped back. One of them called out, "Captain! Don't fight him! Don't you realize who that is?" while another one cried, "It's him! Hiken no Ace! Whitebeard's second division commander!"

Whitebeard's . . .Second division . . . _Commander?!_

The sword clattered out of the captain's hands and he broke out into cold sweat. There was no way. No way to fight one of  _his_ commanders.

The strongest man in the world has some of the most monstrous people that follow him and one was standing right in front of him, ready to fry his insides. For a moment, his mind wandered back to the kid and he assumed that the brat had some ties to the Whitebeard family.

The pirate captain was extremely glad that he didn't kill the boy.

Without another word, the pirate captain spun on his heels and  _ran._ Ran faster than he'd ever run before. He didn't even glance back when the child shouted, "Bye bye!"

And there was no way in  _hell_  he was ever coming back.

 

* * *

 

 

It had been a surprisingly hot year for the crew. It hadn't snowed once since they'd basically adopted Luffy into the family. There hadn't been a winter island since . . . well, a long time.

That was, until today.

With a happy smile, Ace nudged the sleeping bundle next to him. Said bundle only groaned and pulled the blanket tighter over his body, trying to conserve heat. He was shivering slightly, but other than that he looked fine. "Cold."

Ace had to muffle his laugh. "Yeah, I know, buddy. But I have a surprise for you so you have to get up, okay?"

A small tuff of raven black hair puffed its way out followed by two big eyes. "A surprise? Extra breakfast!"

Ace stood up and ruffled the child's soft hair. "No extra breakfast, but it's just as good. I promise." the fire user only had a short-sleeved shirt on even if his nakama were basically in bundles of cloth. It had turned out to be colder than they'd expected and most of the time Whitebeard's crew didn't handle cold weather very well. Ace on the other hand, didn't care either way. Being cold had never been a problem for him.

Luffy wrapped the blanket around his small body as he stood up and bounced across the room a few times. He was still shaking and had both of his arms crossed over his chest so cold air would 'attack' him. "What surprise?"

Ace walked over to the place that they kept Luffy's clothes and pulled out a long sleeve shirt, some warm pants and other warm accessories. He then walked back over to the bed and placed them down in front of Luffy, gesturing for him to get dressed.

Ten minutes later, Ace was helping Luffy get his snow boots on and then leading him to the gallery to get breakfast.

"Thatch!" Luffy rammed himself into the cook the moment he saw him, clinging to his legs. He looked up at the commander with those big doe eyes that seemed to be way too adorable for a five-year-old. "Meat!"

Thatch laughed and picked the boy up so that he was clinging to his back now. "Did you see outside yet, Luffy?"

Luffy blinked and tilted his head to the side. "What’s outside?"

Thatch threw Ace a dirty look and whispered, "You didn't tell him about the snow?" While Ace just rubbed the back of his head and let out a small laugh. "I thought I'd make it a surprise."

"Ace promised me extra meat." Luffy informed Thatch in the most serious voice that he knew how to do. Thatch just chuckled, deciding to amuse the child, and patted his head. He  _highly_ doubted that the fire user did that.

"Oi!" Ace glared at the five-year-old while he was stuffing his own plate with food. "I didn't. You made that up."

Luffy shook his head stubbornly, but there was a sly glean to his eyes. "Nu-uh. Ace promised."

"I promised nothing, you dirty, little liar."

"Can you two not get in a fight over meat?" Thatch said with a sigh, but everyone could tell that he was fond of the boy's antics. "Honestly, it's like you two have the same mindset."

Ace raised an eyebrow, offended. "Did you just compare my mind to the mind of someone who still has trouble speaking?"

"Ace is stupid," Luffy offered up his own opinion. "He can't tie his soolace."

"It's shoelace," Ace corrected before he processed what Luffy said. "Oi! I'm not stupid, brat!" They walked over to the table and Ace sat across from Thatch and Luffy who was now happily munching on his breakfast bacon.

"I don't know," Thatch ventured, an amused grin on his face. "You have your moments, Ace."

"Hey! I just—I can't argue with that."

Thatch reached over the table and clasped the younger man on the back, grinning at the small victory. "You're right, you can't!"

It was always like this during snow days. Thatch would always be this happy ball of energy, full of humor and pranks. Kingdew had once joked that snow just turned Thatch on, even if it wasn't  _quite_ phrased like that. It was true in a way; snow always put Thatch in a good mood no matter the day.

"Did Ace say he was stupid?" Luffy asked curiously, smiling at both of his parent-like figures.

Before anyone could say anything else to add more heat to the already raging fire, Haruta slid her way right next to Ace and threw a careless arm around his shoulders. "What's up? Ace you look like you're about to burn down a building." She poked his cheek and laughed.

Ace sent a glare towards Thatch and Luffy. "Not a building. Just an annoying five-year-old and a cook."

Luffy squealed and immediately dove under the table, shouting, "Meanie Ace!" No one really cared at the moment since they all knew that he'd be back for his fresh plate of bacon..

"You try it and I'll paint your room pink." Thatch said, pointing a piece of bacon in Ace's direction as if that was supposed to be threatening. " _With sparkles."_

Hartua raised an amused eyebrow, a smirk playing on her face. "You're just copying Luffy's idea from last year."

Giggles from under the table indicated that the convict in question was still listening to everything they were saying.

Snorting, Thatch slammed his hand on the table (probably to shut up the boy underneath). "That was  _so_ not funny."

Seeing where this was going, Ace grinned. "I dunno, Thatch. It was pretty funny to watch you run around the ship with bright pink glitter all over you and your hair." Ace paused, and looked thoughtful for a moment. "Actually, it was more of a nightmare but whatever."

Marco slid in the seat next to Thatch and looked down at Luffy's plate in front of him. "Where's the brat?"

Ace flicked his head towards the table. "He's  _hiding."_

Seeing this as the usual routine, Marco just shrugged and started picking off the uneaten parts of Luffy's plate with a grin, baiting the boy to come out. "Ah, really? That’s sad. He sure wasted a whole lot of food that I could eat . . ."

"Don't eat my food!" Came the cry as the boy tried to come out from under the table, for some odd reason, climbing up Ace and using him like a rope and sitting back in his seat.

"Do you know what's outside, Luffy?" Marco asked, taking the boy off the floor and into his arms. Luffy only shook his head. "It's snowing outside."

Luffy tilted his head to the side. "What’s snow?"

"What's snow?" Ace scoffed, standing up and taking both his and Luffy's plate to the trash. "The snow is supposed to be your surprise and you don't  _even know what it is?_ "

Luffy squeaked and buried his head in Marco's shoulder. "Sorry."

"Ace, cool it," Marco said before turning and walking out of the gallery with Ace and Haruta close on his heels. Thatch had to go help the cooks after the meal so he wouldn't join them until later. They walked around below deck for a while, hearing the shouts and cheers from everyone that was above deck.

Luffy stared at the white wonderland around him. Several of the Whitebeard pirates were involved in what looked like a giant snowball fight that seemed to take over the deck. They were all laughing, and looked like they were really enjoying themselves. It had been a while since they'd had peace like this.

"That’s snow?" Luffy asked and unraveled one of his hands from Marco's neck to catch a falling snowflake. "Pretty!"

Marco set the boy down in front of him while a lazy smile. Immediately, Luffy was off, practically diving into the snow laughing all the while. Almost immediately, he had been roped into playing a snowball fight with the rest of the crew. Despite his bad aim, he was doing pretty well.

"He's really grown on us, hasn't he?" Haruta asked, smiling as she watched the boy play.

"I can't believe it's been a year," Ace sighed. "Time just seems to fly out the window."

"Yeah," Haruta laughed and poked Ace's stomach. "You're growing into an old man."

The two started another playful argument, but Marco tuned them out. Had it really been a year? It didn't feel like it. It seemed like just yesterday they were on that island, facing down the giant tiger trying to save a boy they didn't know.

Marco was immensely glad that they did though. It was hard to imagine life before Luffy's constant noise and cheerfulness.

 

* * *

 

 

"Ace should wear this one," Luffy said, holding up a black cape and some fake fangs. "Vampire."

Ace bent down and picked the boy up. "You want me to be a vampire, huh?" Luffy giggled in response making Ace smile even wider. "What are you going to be then? I thought you wanted to be a vampire."

Luffy seemed to think about this for a second before he laughed and threw his arms around Ace's neck. "Imma be a pirate!"

Ace couldn't help it; he laughed. "You can't be a pirate when you already are one, Luffy." the boy pouted and untangled himself from Ace's neck. "Don't give me that look, you're suppose to dress up as something different from what you really are. How about a mummy?"

The boy shook his head. "Too old." he pursed his lips in an adorable way that only Luffy could pull off. "And dead."

"Pumpkin?"

"Too girly."

"Lion?"

"I'm not a baby."

"Zombie?"

Luffy stuck his tongue out. "They smell bad."

"You've never even met one before," Ace sighed. "What about a . . .cat?"

"No."

"You're impossible, you know that, right?" Ace said as he carried Luffy (the boy was still so small…) and the vampire costume over to the counter where a very pretty cashier waited patiently for them. Ace had to give her some respect—she knew that he was a commander but she didn't look scared at all. She had simply told him that any paying customer was welcome with open arms and that if he didn't pay, she was going to kick his ass.

Ace had simply laughed and told her that he'd be paying if he found something.

"Find everything alright?" The cashier asked with a smile as Ace set Luffy down on the counter and handed her the vampire costume that Luffy had picked out for her.

"Kind of," He flashed her a smile and nudged Luffy. "Luffy here wants to be something that he already is and refuses to be anything else."

"Pirate?" The woman guessed as she rang up the costume. Ace nodded with an eye roll making the woman laugh. "Hmm. I might have some other costumes in the back. He'd look cute in a dinosaur costume."

Luffy puffed put his cheeks in denial. "I'm not cute."

The woman ruffled his hair. "Okay, okay. No dinosaur costume. How about a knight?"

Luffy tilted his head to the side. "What's a knight?"

"Knights are brave and noble. They'd go around protecting others by slaying dragons with really cool armor on," The woman tried to explain to the boy whose attention span was worse than a fly's.

"But I don't want to be noble." Luffy said, pouting. "I want to be fierce! Like Oyaji."

Ace sighed, knowing that this argument would take all night. "Luffy, knights have really cool swords."

Luffy's eyes immediately turned into stars. "Swords? Really? Nah, Ace! I wanna be a knight. Then I can have a cool sword like Vista, right?" The boy mimicked a swinging action.

"Different kind of sword, but the same idea." Ace said, running his hand through the boy's hair. He smiled once more at the woman. "Could I get the knight costume too? If its not too much trouble, I mean."

"No, no. It's perfectly fine." the woman said before disappearing behind the counter to fetch the costume.

Ace looked at Luffy who was practically vibrating in his seat and said in an amused voice, "You happy now? This is your first Halloween you're spending in a town, after all."

"Yeah!" Luffy cheered, throwing his hands up in the air. "Ace is best. Shishishshi!"

"Here you go," the woman reappeared and placed the styrofoam costume on the counter table. "Is that all, sir?"

"Yeah," Ace nodded and threw her a large bag of gold coins before she told him the price, which would've been a considerably smaller amount. He picked up Luffy and the two costumes and started walking out the door. "Keep the change!"

The woman was too flustered to reply.

Almost two hours later it was dark out. Lights loosely hung around the houses and gave the street an eerie glow. Luffy was running all over the place, demanding candy, with Ace and Thatch following closely behind. Marco was going to come, but Ace refused to let him leave his room unless he had on a pineapple costume on.

Marco wasn't very happy.

But at least Thatch had dressed up with him. He wore a bright poke-dotted clown suit and a matching wig (that was Vista's idea because Thatch had refused to mess with his hair at first). No one was sure _why_ he chose a clown, but no one really care, either.

"Nah, Ace!" Luffy ran up to him and tugged on his cape. "How come the other kids have so much more candy than me? It's unfair!"

"You have to go to more houses," Ace suggested. "And be really cute while saying _trick-or-treat!_ " not that the boy needed any help with the cute part. Luffy was just naturally adorable.

"Or go steal the other kid's candy." Thatch offered his own input to his pupil. "Then take off running if they start to chase you."

"Really?!" The boy bounced around Thatch's leg, clearly happy. "And they won't be mad?"

"Kid, they'll all be utterly pissed. That's why you have to run fast. Think of it as training, all right? If you can outrun an angry mob of brats, I'll go buy you a very large bag of candy, 'kay?"

"'Kay!"

Yes, Thatch did end up buying Luffy a  _very_ large bag of candy that night.

But really, who expected anything else?

 

* * *

 

 

“Alright, brat.” Atmos said as he carried the currently limp child around the deck. He dropped the boy to the ground, only for him to bounce right back up again. “It’s training time.”

Luffy tilted his head to the side. “But I already did training today?”

Atmos grunted and ruffled the boy’s hair. “Different type of training! Today, you will learn something new! Something strong!”

“Really?!”

“Of course!” Atmos grinned. “Today, you will be learning Haki!”

“Wow!” Luffy looked amazed, barley containing his excitement in six-year-old body. “Haki! Is that what Marco uses when he’s like _bam!_ and _pow!_ and makes his fists all black and cool?”

“It is!” Atmos demonstrated, turning his entire arm black. “Haki is essential, especially when we go back to the New World. There are three types of Haki. Armament Haki, which is what I just showed you. This allows you to hit logia devil fruit users, like Ace!”

“I can hit Ace?!” Luffy said in excitement. “Really?!”

“Yes!” Atmos said. “It is very satisfying. There is also Observation Haki, which allows you to see others attacks before they hit you. Those are the two types which you will be learning.”

“What about the third? You said there was three types, right?”

“I did!” Atmos agreed in his loud, booming voice. “But only certain people have the last type of Haki, King’s Haki! Oyaji does and so do Marco and Ace but no one else! It’s extremely powerful and very dangerous. Only the chosen ones have it! The conquerors!”  

“Ehh?!” Luffy bounced between the large man’s leg. “That’s so cool! I’ll definitely have it!”

Atmos chuckled, “We will see, brat. But for now…” he paused and got into a fighting stance. “Let’s begin!”

 

* * *

 

“Hey, Oyaji?” Whitebeard looked down at his youngest son sitting on his lap. The boy was staring at the mast of the Moby Dick, seemingly deep in thought. “Whats a, um, klaberton? Wait, that’s not right… klaberstien? Klaberman?”

“Klabautermann?”

The boy nodded with a grin, tearing his eyes away from the ship. “Yeah, that! Blamenco was telling stories about them the other day with his division and I didn’t understand ‘cause I didn’t know what they were…”

 It’s a story all the old sailors used to tell to pass the time,” Whitebeard laughed. “The myth of the Klabautermann.”

 “What are they?”

 Whitebeard smiled. “That depends on who you ask. Some say they’re water spirits that board ships. Others say they’re the incarnation of a well-loved ship. They’re said to warn their crew of danger and protect them.”

 “So,” Whitebeard followed the boy’s eyes as they drifted around the deck of the _Moby Dick_. “Does the _Moby_ have one too? She’s loved! I love the _Moby_!”

 “I don’t know,” Whitebeard said. “I’ve seen many things on the Grand Line, but a Klabauternann is not one. I can’t say if they exist or not.”

 The boy visibly deflated at the news, clearly hoping for something else. Trying to cheer up his son, Whitebeard continued, “Though Roger swears he spoke to his ship, the _Oro Jackson_ , once.”

 “Roger? The Pirate King?”

“Yes,” Whitebeard said.

“What was he like, Oyaji? Y’know… the Pirate King?” 

“Hmmm,” Whitebeard turned to look out into the ocean, recalling memories from long ago. “Gol D. Roger. He was an interesting man. The first to make it to the end of the Grand Line. That man… he had a will like no other.”

“Really?!”

“Of course!” Whitebeard laugh. “To sail to Raftel, you have to. Have I ever told you of that one time…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so here are some of the new scenes; Atmos with haki training and Whitebeard with the Klabautermann. I LOVE the Klabautermann story because it is such an interesting thing to include (and it'll come up later in this story). I really hope Oda expands on it in canon bc I really want to know more about it. 
> 
> unlike the original version of UE which focused on Marco, Thatch & Luffy, this story is going to have a hellva lot more interactions with the other commanders. The commanders are the ones who basically raised Luffy, so I wanted to expand on how they all interact with Luffy & with each other.


	5. Chapter 5

They really needed a miracle right now.

Luffy—the small six-year-old boy that they had been taking care of since age four—was currently lying in one of those monotone hospital beds below the deck of the Moby Dick.

Ace hated it. He had never felt so helpless.

Luffy was sick—pretty much dying—from a virus that has stumped even some of the smartest nurses and doctors of the ship. To everyone's horror, they had announced that there was a big possibility that Luffy would die. They couldn't help him.

At first, Ace called bullshit. Luffy was their tiny baby brother who they couldn't seem to get to sit still. He was strong for his age, already showing signs of haki at the tender age of six. The child was as stubborn as a mule, maybe more; there was no way he'd die.

. . . Or so Ace believed.

It wasn't until Ace had visited him for the eighth time within the week that he really grasped the situation. It was the first time that Ace considered the possibility that Luffy could very well die from this.

Of course, he wasn't happy about this. None of the pirates were. Even the newbies that had barley known Luffy could sense the almost somber atmosphere. They probably noticed how the commanders and some crewmembers that Luffy is especially close to would crowd around the infirmary door from time to time when something would happen with Luffy. Though, most of the time it was never good news and only left everyone feeling worse than they already had.

It had been almost two weeks since Luffy had been out of that stupid, white infirmary that smelt like alcohol. He didn't wake up often, maybe once a day for around 30 minutes and if they were lucky, an hour. The boy hadn't been feeling  _great_ before he was sent to the hospital, but at least he never collapsed on the deck before that.

Now that he thought about it, Luffy had been showing a lot of signs before the virus really took over. Constantly complaining about headaches, not eating as much and not sleeping well at all. Often times, Ace found himself with an extra body in his bed, trying to coax the boy into sleeping.

Ace brought his hand up to his face, massaging the tense muscles. He needed to stop worrying; it wasn't like he could do anything. Things like this, like it or not, were beyond his control and he couldn't fix them with a little fire. In fact, when he had desperately suggested that, the nurses had banned him from the infirmary for almost two days.

Two agonizingly  _long_ days.

He reached over the white bed that held Luffy and brushed his hand through the boy's soft hair, not minding the sweat that covered his fingers. Luffy looked horrible; breathing heavily and uneven, his face covered in sweat and his hand tightly gripping the white sheets like he was in a lot of pain. His body was unnaturally warm, an easy given when his temperature was over 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

The raven-haired child let out an involuntary whimper, his breathing hitched as he leaned towards Ace's hand. In contrast, Ace's hand felt like an ice cube compared to Luffy's burning forehead.

With a small, sad smile, Ace brushed the hair out of Luffy's face. "Come on Luffy, you can't drop yet. What happened to your adventure? I thought you were going to see the world with us? Come on, you  _have_ to beat this—whatever it is. You  _can't_ let it win. We miss you. All of us."

As usual, Luffy didn't respond.

A click alerted the fire-user of someone entering the room. He looked up from Luffy and glanced over his shoulder to see Marco standing in all of his glory, though he did look a little worse for wear. There were small bags under his eyes and his hair was sticking up in strange directions. Though, Ace probably looked about the same.

Marco gave him a small smile that Ace didn't return. "How's he doing, yoi?"

Not looking up from Luffy, Ace replied, "I don't know, I'm not a doctor. Though, I think he's getting worse. He temperature seems to be increasing."

Marco ran his hand through his blonde hair, signifying that he was just as frustrated and stressed as Ace was. After all, he was with Ace when they had saved the boy from that tiger so many years ago. Luffy was as close to Marco as he was to Thatch and Ace.

A nostalgic smile slipped onto his face, thinking of the time when the boy had first opened his heart and gave the crew a try. He was timid—almost scared—back then, completely unlike the Luffy that they knew now. Their Luffy was loud, annoying and liked to talk. Things that Ace missed dearly.

Marco hummed, putting a hand on Ace's shoulder and squeezing it. "He'll get better, Ace. Just believe."

"Never though I'd hear you say that, Marco. What happened to logic?"

Marco shrugged, taking his hand off of Ace's shoulder. "Logic doesn't involve our little brother anymore, does it? We need a miracle now, yoi." He paused for a second. "But then again, miracles happen a lot with the Whitebeard Pirates, right? After all, we got you to join. And become a commander. Who would've thought, yoi?"

Ace stood up with a sigh, though the smile was on his face. Oh, the memories. If someone told him back then that he'd join someone else, he probably would've called them insane and throw them off his ship. But here he was, on the very boat that he had despised for a while, with friends and a little brother who always seemed to worry them for the  _stupidest_ reasons.

This time, it was  _not_ a stupid reason.

The fire-user stretched his arms over his head as his stomach growled in protest. Oh, right. He had skipped breakfast this morning. And dinner that night. "I guess." He snatched his hat from the chair and placed it on his head. "Any other news?"

"We're going to land on an island soon," Marco informed him, standing up as well. "There are some doctors there that might be able to do something. The nurses think that this is our best shot if we're going to save Luffy. Oyaji has a friend on the island that would probably help him, yoi."

Ace opened the door with a small grin. Nothing in comparison to the grin that he normally gave everyone, but it was a start. "Miracle indeed."

Marco huffed, following Ace out the door. "Only the best for our baby brother."

 

* * *

 

 

"She's insane," Thatch announced as the watched the supposed 'doctor' of the island run all over her tiny little office that was somehow in the middle of a tree. The said doctor had just ran into the wall for the umpteenth time, laughing as she fell. "I say we try the next island and look for someone who has some common sense left." Ace nodded next to him, but Namur just stood there, arms crossed, looking like a statue with a relatively pissed off face.

The woman gave no indication of hearing the man, just getting up and dusting herself off and continuing to search for whatever she was searching for at the beginning, cackling hysterically every few seconds. The trio of commanders stood off towards the back, not sure what they were supposed to do. Poor Luffy was lying down on a bed that the doctor had set up with a blanket over his shaking shoulders.

The doctor tore through her cabinets; literally throwing anything that wasn't what she needed over her shoulders and on the floor. Finally, she pulled out a bundle of thick leaves and chucked them on Luffy's stomach, igniting a groan from the boy.

"I say were take Luffy and run out the door." Ace agreed, watching with mild fascination and horror as the woman started tearing through her cabinets once more. "I don't think she'll notice."

"No," Namur's voice was firm, yet there was a hint of annoyance. "Luffy won't make it to the next island. Besides, she's supposed to be a world renowned doctor and a friend of Oyaji."

" _She's_ a world renowned doctor?" Thatch inquired, shooting the Fish Man an uncertain look. "Ha! She's just a troll that lives in a tree." The male yelped as something came hurtling at his face, dodging it by mere centimeters. He looked at the offender with wide-eyes, not really sure what to say.

"Just because I'm old doesn't mean I'm deaf, shit head." She snorted, flipping her grey hair over her shoulder and starting down Thatch with evil eyes. "I'm  _only_ helping you because of Whitebeard. Otherwise, I would've let the forest animals take care of you for me." Another hair flip as she turned back to her work.

Ace's eyes narrowed. "We can handle animals just fine, granny."

"Don't sass me, young man!" She threw a frying pan towards Ace's head, knowing full well that he'd just dodge it. "Do you want me to fix your brat or not? That Fishman's doing a good job! He's not criticizing how I work, be more like him."

They both glanced at Namur before turning back to each other and shaking their heads in sync. "Nah," The said together. "We don't want to be a statue, thank you very much."

"Tch," The doctor huffed, turning her boney back to them and heading to the cabinet only to pull out an empty bottle and flick it, shaking her head. "Damn, I thought I had more of this." She spun on her heels, looking at the three boys that were currently invading her house. "I don't have the medicine to fix the brat. He's going to die." She shrugged, clearly not caring. "Sorry."

Ace had to bite his tongue to keep from screaming at her, Thatch was doing the same. Namur just looked at her with slightly narrowed eyes, hidden emotions swirling within them. "What do you mean ' _you can't help him'?_ " His voice was low and dangerous, betraying his earlier facade. "We specifically sought out  _you_ because we knew that you could help him. Were we wrong?"

The woman snorted. "I  _could_ fix him," She said, almost defensively. "But not without  _this."_ She waved the empty bottle in Namur's face, earning a grunt form the annoyed Fishman.

"And  _what_ is  _that?"_  Namur asked, his eyes narrowing even more. Ace took a careful step back, knowing that Namur doesn't have a temper like him—quick to flare to life and usually causes destruction—No, Namur's temper was  _deadly._ It probably came from his shark ancestors, as Ace always liked to joke.

"Bioluminescence," She replied, taking the bottle out of Namur's face before he would break it. "A kind that lives on this island.  _Only_ this island. And I'm out."

Thatch poked his head around Namur's body. "Why don't you just go outside and get some for us?"

The woman scoffed, throwing the bottle over her shoulder and not caring when it shattered against the floor. "I thought I told you that there were dangerous animals out there? Besides, bioluminescences only show up at night. The darker it is outside, the more dangerous the animals are. There is no way in hell that you can send me in there, shitty boy."

Cautiously, Ace peaked his head out from the other side of Namur's body. "Umm. Quick question; what are those bio-loony things?"

The woman glared at him. "They are  _bioluminescences,_ moron. They are small animals that release a light from their body. It's uses for multiple purposes, such as catching prey, warding off predators and  _healing._ " Her eyes sparkled. "A firefly is an example, but we can't use those. I need the ones that live in the water.  _Those_ will heal your brat." She hummed for a second. "I guess you could get them for me if you wanted. Then I'd whip up something." She looked right into Ace's eyes, smirking. "Didn't you say that the animals wouldn't be a problem for you?"

Ace huffed, coming out from behind Namur fully. "We are Whitebeard commanders, granny. If we couldn't handle animals then we wouldn't be here, now would we?"

"You've got spirit. I'll give you that." She ran her hand through her grey hair. "Fine, you'll need a bottle. It's almost dark outside. They'll be in the river by the ocean on the other side of the forest." She took out a bottle from her backpack that was slung around her shoulders and tossed it to Thatch. "There are two kind of bioluminescence's, the blue—which is pretty much everywhere and the red which is what I need. Only the red ones can heal the kid."

"Red, not blue. Got it." Thatch confirmed as they headed towards the door. "We'll get them for you so you can help Luffy!"

The doctor hummed as she watched them walk out and continued to watch them before she disappeared. Then she turned to Luffy, seeking company. "I wonder if I should have told them about that giant snake that guards the bioluminescences." She shrugged as Luffy whimpered in pain. "Ah, you're right. I think they'll figure it out when they get there."

She checked the child's temperature once more, frowning when the heat burned her hand. "Hmm. They better hurry. You only look like you have a few more hours until you kick the bucket, right?" she cackled. "Hopefully they'll get back in time."

Digging through her sack, she pulled out a cloth and walked to the sink. She turned on the sink, enjoying the water as it washed her dirt-covered hands. Living in a tree was very harsh.

It was only then did she notice the glowing red bottle tucked behind the paper towels. The woman chuckled, grabbing the bottle and examining it. She had completely forgot about the towel that was lying in the sink, dripping wet. "I knew I didn't run out!" She laughed, glancing at the door where the boys had left. "I wonder if I should go and tell them . . ." She laughed once more. "Nah! I think I'll make this a surprise."

 

 

* * *

 

 

Tree. Tree. Tree. Oh look, a bush.

Where were the animals that they old granny had warned them about? So far, Ace hadn't seen anything out of the ordinary. The fire-user suppressed a snort. That lady was a fruitcake, nothing out of the ordinary. People are strange in the New World all the time.

Yet, that lady was the only one who knew how to save Luffy.

They  _would_ save Luffy. No matter what.

"Ace, you're going to set the forest on fire." Thatch said, sounding like he didn't care that much. Ace blinked and glanced down at his hands, which were, in fact, on fire. He shook them a few times to extinguish the flames and ran his hands through his hair, trying not to let his worry show on his face.

"Sorry," He said and Thatch's eyes softened. The older man placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze. He opened his mouth, talking in almost a whisper. "We'll find those luminescents, Ace. Luffy isn't going to die today."

"Right," Ace gripped the handle of his knife until his knuckles turned white. "He'll die tomorrow if we don't find anything."

Thatch whistled. "Damn, I never knew that you were this pessimistic."

"I'm not." Ace argued. "I'm just—"

"Worried about Luffy," Namur finished the sentence for him. "We all are. He's our little brother, right? As older ones, we have a right to be worried."

"Actually, I was more worried about leaving him alone with that crazy grandma, but I'm worried about that too."

"Yeah, you're right. We need to get Oyaji some new friends."

 

* * *

 

 

"Damn it," Ace muttered, looking at the black waters below him. It was well past sunset now, probably around five hours since they set out. They were on the other side of the island, where the bioluminescent were supposed to be. "I thought they were supposed to be here."

Yet, all they saw was a clear river with nothing in it. Nothing at all.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Ace continued, tilting his head to the side. "I mean, look. There's nothing."

Thatch frowned at the water while Namur only looked thoughtful. "Yeah, this is the place. I don't know about the bioluminescent, though. I'm not an expert. Namur?"

"Hmm?" The fishman tore his eyes from the water to look at his friend. "Yeah?"

"Any ideas?" Thatch asked him.

The fishman didn't do anything for a second, but then he nodded, stepping up to the river's edge. "There's something in the water, though you can't see them." He smiled a bit and faced the water before bending down. "Watch." He thrust his hand into the water and the other two commanders stared in fascination as the whole river lit up in a beautiful blue color.

"Wow," Ace said, his eyes following the trail of blue that went on for as far as he could see. "They're amazing."

"They'll only show themselves if disturbed," Namur said, smiling a little as he scooped out a handful of water. "You can't see them because they're extremely tiny creatures." He threw the water back in the river. "There are billions of them here. Maybe more."

Thatch frowned, looking up and down the river. "This is great and all, but didn't the lady say that we needed red ones? These are blue."

Ace's eyes widened and he quickly nodded. "Yeah! She did say that."

"Follow the river then," Namur suggested. "Maybe the red ones like salt water better."

 

* * *

 

 

The red bioluminescent did like the ocean better, as Ace, Thatch and Namur found out. They were all over the coast, lighting up every time a wave crashed against the beach.

"There they are!" Ace said happily, running towards the ocean at full speed. "Oi! Thatch, toss me the bottle!"

Thatch smacked him on the head before he handed the bottle to his best friend. "Don't beak it, it's the only one we have."

An image of Luffy in his sick bed flashed across Ace's mind before disappearing. Ace sat on the coast, not minding when the water came up and brushed his legs, splattering the small, red animals all over his legs.

_Luffy . . ._

He would've loved to see this. The boy probably would've been running up and down the beach, laughing without a care in the world. He would've screamed in joy when the water touched his feet. He would've talked everyone's ear off as soon as he got back to the ship and everyone would've smiled and laughed because it was  _Luffy._

Ace missed his little brother.

They all did.

"Ace, we have to hurry," Thatch said, smiling. "Luffy needs us, right? Let's get back to him as soon as possible." Ace nodded and scooped up some seawater filled with the bioluminescent. He watched as the tiny creatures swam around in the container before he capped the bottle and stuffed it on his belt.

Suddenly, Namur came running over, panting heavily. "We need to go.  _Now."_

"Why?" Thatch questioned, seeing no reason for such urgency. Luffy was sick, yes, but Namur wouldn't get that wound up by that reason.

A roar answered their question as all of them whipped around towards the sound.

"You've  _got_ to be kidding me," Ace said, mouth dropping. Standing in front of them looked like a dragon, except no wings or legs. It had beautiful black scales that reflected in the moonlight and two deadly, red eyes that glowed just as bright as the luminescent. It stood over thirty feet high, it's body length was well past sixty.

"That is a big snake," Thatch commented, but his words came out more as a squeak. "I think I know why we need to leave, Namur. Sorry for doubting you." Namur shot him a look that clearly aid, 'you're thinking about  _that_ right now?'

Realization dawned on Ace at that moment.  _That_ snake is the  _only_ thing that's standing in the way Luffy and his antidote. Fire roared around Ace for a moment before he got it under control and glared fiercely at the animals.

Nothing stood in his way.

_Nothing._

 

* * *

 

 

Almost an hour later, Thatch found himself slightly burned and bruised but overall fine and running through the woods trying to find the old woman's hut. It was a tree right? That didn't really help much, considering that there were a lot of trees in the forest but at least they had a general direction.

Ace, as Thatch noticed, was still smoking and muttering threatening things under his breath. The snake was a lot tougher than any of them imagined. Its scales deflected a lot of Ace's flames, but that only seemed to anger the fire user even more and soon it was just a one on one with fire vs. scales.

Eventually, Ace had beaten it with a knife to the eye, but it did take longer than any of them wanted. The morning rays were already peaking over the treetops, casting shadows that danced almost happily.

They didn't have much time left.

"Hey," Namur said, pointing in front of them. He had a hand over his eyes, shielding the sun from them. "Isn't that the tree?"

"Ah! It is!" Ace shouted happily.

"'Bout time," Thatch grinned, rubbing his hands together in anticipation. "Luffy! Wait for us!"

They sprinted at top speed and burst through the door startling the doctor. She jumped up, spinning around with what looked like a dagger in her hand. Her eyes were glowing (was that normal?) but she seemed to recognize them and her eyes stopped glowing, returning to their original murky white color.

The woman eyed them for a second and crossed her arms. "What took you so long? It's already too late for  _you_ to save him."

No. Nonononon _no—_

 _"What?"_ they all yelled out, worry and fear bubbling in their stomachs. They were too late? That meant that Luffy—

"But," the woman continued, ignoring their outburst completely and looked around her room. "I found the extra luminescents that I was talking about and I didn't feel like waiting for you, so I went ahead and healed him."

"Ace!" suddenly Ace was flung to the ground by a small body that he recognized well. Two arms repeatedly wrapped around his torso and a small head was stuffed in his chest. Ace grinned widely and hugged the boy back, holding back the tears that threatened to fall. "Luffy!"

The head detached itself from his chest and the six-year-old offered a giant grin. Though, it wasn't at the level that it normally was, but was still a start from where Luffy was lying in bed a few hours ago, unable to move. "I'm okay now! I wasn't before and it hurt whenever I moved and I was scared but then that lady stuffed this yucky stuff down my throat and forced me to swallow it and I'm okay now! She said that you were out fighting monsters and that you'd be back soon." the boy sat up on his chest, grinning like an idiot. "So, did you win?"

Ace grinned, picking the boy off from his chest and standing up. He didn't put Luffy on the ground though, instead the said boy hung from his shoulders, smiling happily. "Of course I beat the monster! Knife right to the eye! He won't be bothering us anymore, will he?"

Luffy giggled in response, his bangs hanging in his face.

"Oi, oi. Aren't you forgetting us?"

Luffy's grin brightened even more and he jumped off Ace's shoulders before the fire user could protest, hugging Thatch's and Namur's leg. "Thatch! Namur!"

Thatch bent down and ruffled the boy's hair, laughing. "You gave us a scare there, Luffy! We really though that you were a goner."

Luffy hummed, putting his own hand in Thatch's. "I'm not going to die like that! I'm still tiny! I want to grow up and see the world with you guys!"

Namur grinned, scooping the child in his arms. "Well, we want to see the world with you too."

Luffy laughed, wrapping his arms around Namur's neck. "'M hungry."

"Alright, alright," The doctor interrupted their small reunion. "I fixed him, now get out of my house! I have stuff to attend to. Like sleeping. And trying to get all these mushy thoughts out of my head."

Ace grinned and bowed at her, something that he didn't do often. "Thank you for saving our little brother."

The woman's eyes softened for a fraction of a second before they hardened again. "Yeah, yeah. Get out. Don't you have that holiday to celebrate? Christmas was it?"

That's when they realized the date.

December 18th. A week until Christmas.

Well, isn't that perfect?

 

* * *

 

 

"Oyaji!" Luffy came running up on deck, weaving in between people's feet as he tried to get to Whitebeard's chair. It had been almost a week since they had left the island and Luffy was still recovering, but other than that, they were all doing great. The boy still got dizzy and would sometimes complain about a headache, but at least he wasn't bed-ridden like before.

Luffy stumbled for a second as he struggled to regain his balance. He was clutching something red and white to his chest as he continued to run across the deck and stopped in front of Whitebeard's chair.

"Oyaji!" He chirped, holding out the red cloth. "Oyaji needs to wear the Santa Hat!"

Whitebeard took the child and placed him on his lap, gently running his giant fingers through the child's soft hair. Marco, who was walking by, looked up at the two with an amused expression. "Why does he need to wear that, Luffy?"

The child giggled, practically radiating in joy. "'Cause he's already got the beard, now he just needs the hat! Oyaji can replace Santa this year!"

One of the Whitebeard pirates laughed, use to the child's antics by now. "You're going to scare a lot of children, Luffy! Maybe give some moms a heart attack! "

Ace decided to join in the conversation by adding his own input. "Besides, Oyaji has a mustache, not a beard."

Luffy stuck his tongue out at them, signifying that he didn't really care and turned back to Oyaji. "Please? Just for today!"

Whitebeard knew that he had lost, but thought he'd tease the child a bit more. "What if someone attacks the ship?"

"Santa Whitebeard!" Was the immediate response.

Leaning over to Marco, Ace whispered, "Did that make any sense to you?" Marco simply shrugged and laughed.

"Fine, brat. I'll wear it, but just for today alright?" Whitebeard said with a smile, taking the hat from the six-year-old's hand. He placed it on his head so it covered up his bald spot and the tip of it hung in his face. "Satisfied?"

Luffy hummed. "I think you need to find a suit and put that on too!" He looked up at his father figure and grinned happily.

"A suit, huh?" Whitebeard asked, laughing. "I don't think there's a suit big enough for a man like me, brat."

"Izo can make one!"

"Hell no!" The cross dresser yelled, crossing his arms on his chest. "Besides, that takes time! I don't have that time!"

Luffy whirled around, giving the cross dresser his best puppy dog face. " _Please,_ Izo? I really want Oyaji to be Santa! I'll make it up to you, I swear!"

Izo narrowed his eyes for a second before sighing and running his hands through his long, black hair. "Brat, you can kill someone with those eyes."

The boy tilted his head to the side. "I can?"

Rolling his eyes, Izo smirked. "Never mind, Luffy. Just give me a few hours, I'll have it done by tonight. Christmas Eve."

 

* * *

 

 

**Whitebeard's New Plan? Marines Confused!**

All of the Whitebeard pirates were howling in laughter as they read through the newest newspaper article two mornings after. There was a picture of Oyaji, dressed as Santa, along with Marco who had reindeer horns on and a bright red clown nose.

Marco looked over Ace's shoulder and scowled at the picture. "I look completely ridiculous. How did Luffy talk me into that again?"

"He's a very manipulative six-year-old," Ace said with an easy grin, shooting the youth beside him a proud look. "We're trained him well."

Said boy looked up at Ace, not understanding what they found so funny about the picture. "What's manipulative?"

Ace stood up from the table in the dinning hall and ruffled the boy's hair. "Doesn't matter, buddy." Luffy blinked a moment before he turned back to his meal and continued to stuff his face.

Ace walked to the back of the gallery and leaned against the wall next to Thatch. "He really grows up fast, doesn't he?"

Thatch laughed. "Don't they all?"

"I wonder what they future has in store for our little brother," Marshal D. Teach said, laughing as well as he walked up to the other commanders. "I bet it'll be ah,  _interesting."_

They all agreed, but no one seemed to notice the strange glint in the fat man's eyes.

No one except for Luffy, that is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i was originally gonna delete this chapter bc i was like why tf did i write this. i don’t even celebrate christmas. im jewish. but it has some nicely written interaction w/ the crew and i didn’t know how to change it and have that stay the same so i just left it ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> I've been kayaking & swimming in bioluminescent bay in the cayman islands before and holy shit, it is quite possibly the most amazing experience i've ever had. if y'all have a chance to see 'em in real life, take it bc they're disappearing.


	6. Chapter 6

"I lost him!" Ace cried, clinging onto Rakuyo's leg. Rakuyo frowned at him, shaking his leg as if he wanted the second division commander to get off. Ace only held on tighter, fake sobs coming from his mouth. "How can I lose him? I'm so stupid!"

"We realized that a while ago, Ace." Rakuyo muttered, rolling his eyes. His weapon whimpered, looking at Ace that was currently on her master's leg. "But this is kind of ridiculous. Care to tell what's going on?"

"Luffy disappeared!" He yelled, gritting his teeth and standing back up, brushing the dust from his legs. He glanced at the direction that the Moby Dick was anchored, then at the town that was in the opposite direction. "He just disappeared! Damn it! I just looked away for a second and he was gone!"

Rakuyo sighed, bringing his hand up to massage his temples. It wasn't that surprising that Luffy would run off—it's happened a lot, they really needed to break that habit before he got himself hurt—but the fact that this was an island for  _pirates_ was quite worrisome. There was no doubt that Luffy was lost, possibly wandering the town hopelessly, and they really couldn't count on him finding his way back. The kid had a horrible sense of direction.

His weapon looked up at him, her powerful jaw clicking together in a concerned tone. He brushed his hand over her spikes, thinking of how they could solve this problem without tearing up the town to look for him.

He sighed again. This was going to be harder than he thought. They might have to get Marco to search from the sky while Haruta searched from the ground. She was fast and extremely observant, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem for her.

"What do you want me to do?" Rakuyo asked, running his hand through his dreadlocks. The 7th division commander wasn't a babysitter. "Why didn't you just get Marco? He might help."

Ace visibly paled at the thought of the phoenix. "No, no. If Marco found out he would  _kill_ me. Like, tear off every limb slowly and chuck me into the ocean. Plus, he probably wouldn't talk to me for weeks.  _Weeks,_ Rakuyo! He'd glare at me every change he gets! Do you know how fucking  _scary_ he can be?"

Rakuyo rolled his eyes but he did understand Ace's expense a bit more. Marco wasn't someone to be taken lightly, especially around Luffy. The phoenix was a huge softie for the kid (Hell, they all were) but it wasn't like he would ever admit that. "I can't do much either." He reminded to fire user. "Maybe Thatch could help you? Curiel might be free."

Ace gave him a dull glare. "You aren't busy, you're just walking on the beach!" The fire user paused and took a huge breath, running his hand through his dark hair. "Couldn't you, I don't know, have your weapon sniff Luffy out or something? I'm getting pretty desperate here!"

Rakuyo's weapon looked at him, letting out a bark much like that of a dog. "Oi, oi. She's meant for battle, not looking for kids. I don't even know if she  _can_ smell, but I can help you look." Ace looked at him hopefully. "For a price." He added.

" _Rakuyo!"_  The fire user whined, giving the man his best-kicked puppy-dog face.

The man rolled his eyes. "It'll be a small favor. Don't you want help?"

Ace sent him a dull glare. "He's your little brother too."

"You're right," Rakuyo agreed. "He is but I know he can take care of himself just fine. I'm not going to baby him like you, Marco and Thatch do."

"He's  _seven."_

"He's a  _Whitebeard Pirate,"_ Rakuyo snapped. "We've been training him since he's four, he already know a bit of haki and he can take care of himself! The kid isn't someone you should underestimate."

"I know that!" Ace threw him hands up in the air. "I helped raise him with everyone else! But Luffy can't even control his devil fruit yet! Haki or not, it wont do any good if he just hit's himself! Plus, there are suppose to be some super rookies on this island, along with a yonko! He might be strong, but he can't go up against someone like  _that."_

Rakuyo's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "A yonko? Which one?" Alright, maybe he should let Ace get off easy. After all, the fire-user was right. Luffy was strong, but he couldn't go up against super rookies and yonkos. Maybe in the future, but not at the moment. He still had a lot to learn.

Ace shrugged. "I don't know. Pops sent some people out to go and check, but last time I was on the ship, they were still out. A yonko is still a yonko. They're dangerous, even to pops. Remember last time Kadio attacked us?"

Rakuyo shook his head, remembering the attack clearly. "Yeah, it's hard to forget." After all, they nearly blew up the _Moby Dick_. Luffy hadn't been with them at the time, thank god, and they suffered a lot of casualties. He rolled his shoulders when his weapon clicked its metal teeth together. "Alright, let's go. We have a seven-year-old to find."

 

* * *

 

 

Luffy was lost.

Okay, okay. It wasn't the first time he'd been lost, but he didn't like this town. At all. So far, for around the hour that he'd been here, he'd seen seven people get shot (not that bullets bothered him much anyways), three get stabbed (A little bit more worrisome, but he still wasn't panicking) and a few other dead people in the back of the alleys that he'd checked.

He was in a not-so-friendly town and he wanted out of it.

He missed Ace . . . but then again, if Ace found him, the fire-user would probably kill him. Though, to be fair, that butterfly was pretty interesting.

He hummed to himself, kicking a stray rock as he skipped through the town. The town's people were looking at him funny . . . Did he do something wrong? Instead of getting mad, he just smiled at them, hoping to make them happier.

Luffy continued on, looking all around the town hoping to find his family. He probably could've asked someone for directions but he didn't feel like getting stabbed today. Honestly, he wanted to stay away from the people of this town as much as he could.

Ha. And Ace called him stupid.

"Oi! You!" A rather high-pitched voice called from behind him. "The short kid with the black hair! Oi! Stop!" Luffy blinked for a moment before turning around only to come face to face with a boy around two years older that him that happened to be much,  _much_ bigger than he was.

The boy marched up to him, ginning like a maniac. Only then did Luffy notice the other two boys—a bit younger than the first one—behind the boy that was approaching him. They were laughing, a dark gleam in their eyes. The oldest reached him and stood over him in a threating manner. He looked like a really big hippo . . . "What's a little kid like you doing out here in our town? Where's your mama, brat?"

Luffy blinked before smiling at the boy. "I'm pretty sure Marco is still on the ship." Well, he technically didn't have a mom but Ace kept calling Marco a 'mother hen', so that had to count for something, right?

"Are you stupid or something?” The boy asked him harshly; looking for a reaction that Luffy wouldn't give him. They were just bullies, Luffy had dealt with bullies for a long time.

Luffy hummed, still smiling. He really should find Ace . . .

The oldest boy snorted, nudging one of his cronies. The crony looked confused at first, then awkwardly laughed with the oldest boy. "Ain't that cute, eh? We've got another dumbass in this world that we should take care of before the adults get 'em."

The crony on the left grinned devilishly. "Now hold still, brat. This'll only hurt  _a lot."_

The oldest quickly unsheathed a knife that was hidden under his clothes and charged at Luffy, who was slowly losing his smile. A small yelp escaped his lips as the boy stabbed down, dodging it hastily.

"What are you doing?" Luffy cried out as he jumped out of the way of the knife again. "Hey! Stop that! Knifes hurt!"

"I hope so," The boy cackled, his bright blue eyes darkening with malice. He looked over his shoulder and nodded to his cronies. They grinned and rushed at Luffy, trying to grab his arms.

Luffy knew that he couldn't use his devil fruit—he was still learning to control it. The most that he could probably do was hit one of the boys in the face and  _then_ himself. Plus, Ace had told him not to cause trouble. Hurting these kids would be considered trouble.

He didn't notice the other boy that had managed to sneak up behind him until his fat arm wrapped around his neck, cutting off his air supply. On instinct, Luffy grabbed his arm, trying to tug him off. "Hey! Hey! Let me go!" He started kicking and struggling but it didn't seem to do any good.

"Quit struggling!" The boy holding him snapped, applying more pressure to the rubber boy's neck. The oldest boy started stalking towards him, knife in front.

In one swift movement, the boy stabbed Luffy under his left eyes, laughing when Luffy screamed. Blood began to drip down his face as tears formed in the corner of his eyes.

This place, Luffy decided, was  _defiantly_ not his favorite island.

The older boy yanked the knife out of his eye harshly and not a second later the knife was imbedded into his stomach. Luffy thought he cried out Ace's name, but he wasn't sure. The pain was agonizing.

"Little boys shouldn't be out on the street all alone, you know." The boy whispered and he pressed the knife harder. Luffy closed his eyes, holding in a whimper. He needed to stay strong!

But the world was starting to go black and his knees were shaking. Luffy didn't know how much longer he could stay awake. The knife was pulled out once again, prepared to strike but before it reached it destination, a new voice entered Luffy's hearing.

"Oi! You! Leave the kid alone!"

Luffy cracked his eyes open, only seeing blurry shapes. However, he did notice that the boy seemed to be backing up, staring at the new figure.

_Ace?_

But it wasn't his brother—it wasn't any of his brothers.

"Shit!" The boy that attacked him cursed, backing away some more. "Let the brat go! We need to get out of here  _now!"_

The arms around Luffy's neck disappeared, leaving the seven-year-old boy to stand on his own, gasping for air. With a pained cry, his knees gave out, falling towards to cold, hard ground.

Another arm wrapped around his waist, mindful of the bleeding wound in his stomach. The small boy was pulled into a strong chest. He thought he heard a sign and a hand ghosted over his hair.

"Better get you fixed up, huh?" Luffy opened his eyes a bit, glancing at his savior. All he could see was vibrant red hair and a bright yellow straw hat that sat atop of his head. The light stung his eyes and he shut them once more, this time allowing himself to embrace the darkness, falling limp in the kind stranger's arms.

 

* * *

 

 

The first thing that Luffy noticed when he got up was it was  _hot._ He wanted to throw the sheets that were spread over his small body. The second thing he noticed was this wasn't his bed. This wasn't the Moby Dick.

His eyes promptly snapped open with a startled cry, sitting up in the bed and scaring the man that was beside him. The man—Luffy noticed it was the one that saved him before—flailed around in his chair for a second before falling down on the wooden deck.

He sat up, rubbing his head, grumbling under his breath. "Jeeze, kids and their loud noises." He didn't seem to notice the seven-year-old starting at him, mouth slightly agape.

The man let out a loud yawn, stretching his arms above his head. He blinked at Luffy once before offering a grin and stood up. "So, you're finally up, huh?" He chuckled. "Good. I thought you died there for a second. So, what's your name?" He bent down, starting Luffy in the eyes.

Finding his voice, the boy quickly answered. "I'm Luffy."

The stranger ruffled his hair and stood up, "Luffy, eh? I'm Shanks, nice to meet ya." Shanks hummed to himself, before standing up fully, looking around the room. "I guess I need to get the doctor to look at you." He sighed, looking back at the boy in the bed. "Stay, alright? Don't leave that bed until I get back."

With that, he opened the door and left.

Luffy blinked, allowing his emotions to surface. He was scared, confused and his stomach hurt like a bitch. All he wanted was  _someone_ he knew. Like Oyaji. Oyaji would always tell him stories whenever he was stressed or scared.

He wanted to go  _home._

Whimpering, he laid back down, pulling the covers over his head. Maybe if he pretended that he was home, he would feel better. But no matter how hard he tried to convince himself that everything was fine, he couldn't fight the truth.

He was alone, scared, lost and  _hungry._

Not a second later, the door slammed open and Luffy cautiously peeked his head from beneath the covers. His black hair hung in his eyes as he gripped the white sheets harder. Shanks was there along with a man that Luffy didn't recognize. He assumed that the other man was the doctor.

"The patient is finally up, hmm?" The doctor mused, setting a bottle of clear liquid on his desk. He walked over to Luffy's bed and placed a cool hand over Luffy's forehead. Luffy flinched at the touch, but didn't comment. "You still have a fever, though it's part of the healing process. Shouldn't be too bad considering how deadly the poison was."

Luffy tilted his head to the side cutely. "Poison?"

Shanks hummed, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Ah, poison. Apparently the knife that the boy had was coated with some sort of poison. I don't know much about it but apparently it was pretty dangerous."

"Should've killed a boy your age in seconds," the doctor added, going back to shuffling his stuff. Luffy looked at him, puffing out his cheeks slightly. A little poison wouldn't kill him! Besides, he was pretty sure that Fossa's food was more toxic than a little bit of poison!

"Now tell me," Shanks brought his attention from to doctor to him. "Why were you out there all alone? I can tell you don't live on this island."

Luffy rubbed his face, frowning when he felt a bandage under his eye. "I got separated from my brother and then I got lost." He yawned, trying to shake off the tiredness that was threatening to overwhelm him. "Ne, how long have I been asleep?"

"About two days," Shanks answered. "The doctor was surprised that you weren't out even longer."

The color drained from Luffy's face. Oyaji would be really worried by now . . . And Ace. He shivered just by thinking about it. He would be lucky if Ace wasn't ravishing the whole village to the ground by now. He could be pretty protective.

"Something wrong, kid?" Shanks asked, something akin to worry lining his face.

"I have to go!" Luffy yelped, jumping out of the bed and darting towards to door. A hand reached out and grabbed the back of his shirt, stopping him in his tracks. He thrashed around, ignoring the burning pain from his wound. "Let me go! I need to go!"

Luffy felt his feet leave the ground as he was pulled up in front of a face. He stared into the doctor's emotionless eyes defiantly. "You won't be going anywhere until you heal, brat." He set Luffy back on the bed and guarded the door to make sure that the boy didn't try to escape again.

"I have to go!" Luffy whinnied, trying to jump off the bed only to be stopped by Shanks who simply shook his head. "They'll be worried!"

"No," the doctor replied harshly. "They can wait a week for you to heal. I'm certain that they wouldn't want their little brother coming back injured, hmm?"

Luffy bit his bottom lip, trying to keep in the tears and hide his trembling fingers. Why wouldn't they let him see his family? He missed them! He should've never chased after that butterfly in the first place. "But—"

"No buts," the doctor glared at his stubborn patient. "You will stay on this ship until you heal." He turned to Shanks. "Make sure the brat stays in this room and doesn't get out of that bed!"

With that, he made his leave.

Shanks sighed, running his hand through his red hair. "Sorry, Luffy. I guess you'll be staying with us for a while, right?"

Luffy shook his head, whipping the tears that were threatening to fall from his face. "I need to get back. I can't stay."

Shanks gave him a look. "Doctor said you couldn't leave." He sighed once again when the boy shook his head frantically. "So you said you aren't from here. Are you a marine brat? Or just a passing sailor?"

Luffy frowned, looking down at the white sheets. "'M not a marine. I'm a pirate."

Shanks stared at the boy for a second, judging weather or not he was serious. Once he realized that the boy was, in fact, completely serious, he promptly burst out laughing. Luffy stared at him for a second, startled by his reaction. "You? A pirate? You're too small!"

That seemed to get the boy riled up. His dark eyes narrowed at the offender, hands clenching into tight balls. "I am not! Don't make fun of me!" Shanks just continued to laugh. "Stop laughing! It ain't funny, bastard!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Shanks wheezed out. "Just didn't think I'd ever met a kid that was your age playing pirate!"

"I'm not playing!" Luffy threw his hands up in the air, desperately trying to get the man to understand. "I'm a real pirate!"

Shanks coughed into his hand, still grinning. "Alright, calm down! The doctor will skin me alive if you pop your stiches." He gently pushed the boy back onto the bed. "You're probably tired, right? You should sleep some more."

"I'm not tired, bastard." Luffy weakly struggled in his grasp. Shanks knew better though, the boy's dropping eyes were a plain sign that the boy was indeed tired.

"Come on kid, sleep. You'll heal faster and you can go home to your family quicker." Shanks tired to bribe the boy. Thankfully, it worked.

The boy's eyes lit up in a way that Shanks hadn't seen in a long time. "Really?! If I sleep, I can see them faster?"

Shanks chuckled. "Yeah, if you sleep you can see them faster." He removed his hand from the boy's shoulder and watched as he buried his head into the plain, white pillow.

The red-haired man stood up, taking his leave.

He had a lot to think about.

 

* * *

 

 

"So," Shanks turned to the newest passenger on the  _Red Force._ "You said you were a pirate, right?"

They were sitting out on deck (with doctor's permission of course), watching the waves as they slashed against the hull. On the other side of the ship, they could hear the people of the town just starting to go around their daily rounds.

It had been almost four days since Shanks had found Luffy and he had to say that Luffy was getting along with the crew just nicely. He wasn't even scared when Shanks told him that they were pirates—in fact, he seemed more exited.

"Ah," Luffy replied, lying on deck and staring up at the sky. "Yeah."

"Why'd you become a pirate?" Shanks asked, tearing his eyes away from the seven-year-old who was sprawled out on deck.

Luffy seemed to think about this for a second. "When I was really small, my family saved me."

"Family, huh?" Shanks mused, staring at his own family who were busying themselves on the ship. He didn't really think that there were other pirate crews out there besides him and Whitebeard who really considered themselves a 'family'. "Is there another reason?"

A grin stretched across the young boy's face. Something that Shanks hadn't seen since he sailed with Roger. "Freedom." He answered. "I just want to be free."

Shanks grinned in response, fiddling with his straw hat—his treasure. "And being a pirate makes you free?"

Luffy hummed, closing his eyes. "Oyaji once told me about someone called the pirate king."

Shanks fought a goofy grin off his face. "Oh yeah? What'd he say about him?"

"He said that the Pirate King had the most freedom in the world." Luffy giggled. "A lot of people thought of him as a monster, but Oyaji liked him."

"You want to be Pirate King?" Shanks asked, crossing his arms over his chest. He would not admit that he was getting some what attached to this boy.

Said boy simply shook his head. "Oyaji'll be pirate king." He said without a shred of doubt in his voice. "The Pirate King might have the most freedom in the world, but I already have all the freedom that I want." He paused for a second. " _And_ I have a family. I'm not alone anymore."

"Is that so?" Shanks gave a ghost of a smile. "You're a special little boy, you know that?"

The laugh afterwards told Shanks all he needed to know.

 

* * *

 

 

"You miss your family, brat?" Benn Beckman said, plopping down next to Luffy. It was rare to see the kid alone—most of the time he was either in the infirmary or clinging to Shanks' legs, listening to one of his stories.

Luffy blinked, offering a grin to his visitor, though Benn noticed how it was a bit forced. "Yeah."

"Are you feeling any better?" The man continued to question.

Luffy gave him another fake grin. "Yep! My stomach isn't hurting anymore!"

Benn's eyes narrowed, knowing well that Luffy desperately wanted to see his  _family_ again. "Don't lie to me."

The grin faded and the boy looked up at him with innocent confusion. "What'd you mean?" A bottom lip protruded out, his entire face forming into a pout.

Instead of answering, Benn reached over Luffy and lightly poked his wound. The reaction was immediate; Luffy yelped in pain, curling into a ball while desperately grasping at his wound.

"Isn't hurting anymore, huh?" Benn carefully picked the boy up, holding him bridal style until his pain subsisted.

Luffy groaned into his chest. "That was dirty."

"We're just trying to help, kid."

 

* * *

 

 

"You have a devil fruit?" Shanks asked while pulling on Luffy's face. It stretched, making Shanks grin. Luffy started to whine and swat at the offending hand. "Rubber?"

Luffy nodded while trying to pry the older man off of his face. Shanks responded by simply lifting him up, laughing when the boy gave out a startled yelp. "Let me go! Quit playing with my face!" When Shanks didn't stop, Luffy started aiming kicks at his balls. "Shanks!"

Shanks laughed, dodging Luffy's futile escape strategies. "So you sink when you hit the water?" He pulled Luffy to be eyelevel with him. Flashing a grin, Shanks pulled the younger's nose. "I'm going to start calling you anchor from now on!"

"Oi! Shanks!" He flailed his arms around, pouting. "Meanie!"

Shanks set the boy on the ground, playfully ruffling his hair. "Come on, Anchor! You love me!"

Luffy puffed his cheeks out like the little kid he was and turned around while crossing his arms. "No, I don't."

Shanks snorted. "You've got a lot of spunk for a little kid." He stood up, ruffling the boy's hair once more before heading to his cabin. "Stay out of trouble, okay? I have to work." He glanced over his shoulder. "That means no going off this boat."

The seven-year-old glared in return.

 

* * *

 

 

"Where do you think he is?" Ace whispered, staring out at the ocean. The moon reflected across the water, making an eerie appearance. "It's been almost two weeks now. Do you think something happened?"

His friend, Thatch, rolled his eyes though his worry was evident on his face as well. "Obviously. Luffy wouldn't just run off. We know that."

"What do you think happened?" Ace asked, pushing himself from the railing. He looked up at the starless sky, running his hands through his hair. "Where is he now?"

Thatch patted him on the back. "If I knew that, he'd be here by now, don't you think?" When Ace didn't respond, the older male gave an exasperated sigh. "Ace, you really should sleep. It's been a while since you've had any rest."

"I have watch tonight," The younger male muttered. "Besides, I'll be the first to know if anything changes."

"In the middle of the night?" Thatch snorted. "Sorry, buddy, but I highly doubt that anything will change."

"Commander Thatch is right, Commander Ace," A deep voice boomed. Ace looked over his shoulder to see one of his division members, Teach, looking at him with hard eyes. "I can take your watch duty tonight."

Ace waved his hand in the air, trying to keep a yawn in. "No, no. I've got it, Teach. You can go back to bed."

"He's not going to get here faster by you just standing out here," Teach said, voice full of authority. "And he definitely wouldn't like the fact that you're depriving yourself of your daily needs."

Ace winced at the words, knowing that Luffy would suspect something. He might act obtuse most of the time, but he knew when his friends were hurt, especially Ace. Ace could never lie in front of the boy no matter how hard he tired since his little brother could read him so well.

"Alright," Ace grumbled. "Fine. I'll try and sleep. I'll get tomorrow's watch."

"That's Marco's watch time." Thatch blinked before grinning. "Good luck with that."

"Shut up, Thatch."

 

* * *

 

 

"You know," Yassop flashed a grin at Luffy one day in the gallery. "I have a boy your age."

Luffy blinked and looked up at the sharpshooter. "Really?"

"Ah," Yassop said, letting out a light laugh. "I haven't seen him or my wife since he was a baby."

"Do you visit them?" Luffy asked, exited to know about kids his age. Being with the Whitebeard pirates was great, but most of them were at least twenty years older than him. He never really knew what it was like to have a friend his age.

Yassop shook his head. "I haven't seen them since I left. The sea was calling, y'know? It's not like you can ignore her call. I might miss them, but I don't regret leaving."

"Nah, can you tell me about him?" Luffy didn't understand why the pirates around him groaned, including Shanks.

Yassop laughed, rustling his hair. "Of course I can, brat! Maybe one day you'll meet him!" And with that, Yassop stared going into detail about everything he knew about his son that he had barley met.

Three hours later and Luffy was starting to understand why everyone else looked so frustrated.

 

* * *

 

 

"Luffy." Poke. "Luffy." Poke. "Luffy." Poke. "LUFFY!"

Luffy blinked, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. He looked up to see the Red-Haired man sigh in exasperation. "Huh?"

Shanks grinned, showing off his white teeth. He plopped beside the seven-year-old, almost laughing at Luffy's dumbfounded face. "I've been calling you for about five minutes now. You were dead to the world." He grin dropped a bit. "I wanted to know about your family. Maybe we could find them. The doctor said that you could go home tomorrow."

A joyful grin spread across Luffy's small face and his eyes sparkled. He stood up, grabbing Shanks' knee and bouncing up and down. "Really? Really?! I can see them tomorrow?!"

Shanks laughed, though he knew that he'd miss the brat once he left. Chances of ever meeting again were slim, especially since he was an 'exclusive yonko'. Most ships tended to stay away from them. For fear of their life and all. "Calm down, Anchor!" The boy stopped jumping, though he was practically shaking in excitement. Shanks refused to think of him as cute and he was  _certainly_  not getting attached . . . "What can you tell me about them?"

Luffy giggled. "Well, Ace likes that call Marco a pineapple 'cause his hair is in a pineapple shape." Huh. That kind of sounded like Marco the Phoenix from Whitebeard's crew. "Ace likes to set things on fire." Fire-fist Ace? "Thatch is a really good cook!" He chirped out happily. "And Fos—"

"Hey Anchor? " Shanks said, trying to swallow the lump in his throat. Could this kid be a part of  _his_ crew? No. Impossible. Whitebeard knew better than to take in a child, it was too dangerous.

"Yeah?" Luffy tilted his head to the side, still grinning.

"Could you tell me your captain's name?"

Luffy hummed for a second. "I  _think_ I heard a guy the other day shout something like 'Newgate!' but I don't know. I just call him Oyaji." The seven-year-old sat down in front of him again. "But he's really,  _really_ big!" He spread his arms out wide as if demonstrating. "And he's got this white banana-looking mustache." Luffy giggled. "Stefan had one too."

Shanks's mouth dropped open. "Is his name Edward Newgate?" Luffy shook his head, confused. "Whitebeard?"

That seemed to ring a bell. The grin slipped back onto place and he nodded enthusiastically. "Uh-Huh! We're the Whitebeard pirates!"

"Luffy?"

"Hm?"

"Please tell me that's a joke."

"Ah, no. Why?"

"You've got to be kidding me!" Shanks yelped, staring at the child in front of him. Did he really take one of Whitebeard's children away from the man? Damn it, when they bring the brat back, all hell is going to break loose.

"Shanks?" The seven-year-old sounded worried. "Shanks? What's wrong? You sound like you don't like Oyaji."

Shanks rubbed his temples, thinking of ways to keep his head on his shoulders. "He's not on my favorite people list. I guess you could call me my  _friend._ Though, he's more of a drinking buddy." Shanks smirked. "I don't think he likes me very much."

"Ehh?" The boy question, like he couldn't understand why they didn't get along. Suddenly, Luffy's eyes sparked in realization and gasped. "Oh! You're that annoying red-haired brat that Oyaji'll sometimes complain about!"

Shanks laughed, though it was stained. "He talks about me?"

"He called you an idiot who was too scared to face him in person." Luffy said seriously.

Shanks snorted. "That sounds like something he'd say. Well, I guess we don't have to search for your family since we already know where he is." Noticing Luffy's questioning gaze, he elaborated. "He's on the far side of the island. One of my nakama told me about him a few days back."

Shanks stood up, bringing Luffy with him and leading him to the infirmary where he was temporarily staying. "Come on, Anchor. Let's get you to bed."

 

* * *

 

 

"One day, I'll surpass you." The brat suddenly declared as they were walking off the  _Red Force_  to go and give him back to his family. He grinned cheekily at Shanks. "One day, when you visit Oyaji, I want to fight you, Shanks! I'll become really strong!"

"Oh?" Shanks fiddled with his straw hat. "Is that so?" His tone was almost mocking, though he already knew that the brat would become powerful—more powerful than anyone might imagine.

"Yes!" For a seven-year-old, Shanks gave him props. He had fierce determination and a will like no other. "I'm going to get a lot stronger! Stronger than you!"

Shanks took the straw hat off his head, contemplating what he was about to do. Knowing the kid for only two weeks opened his eyes up to things that he didn't think possible. This brat had literally turned what he knew upside down, exactly like a certain captain that he once knew… He couldn't help but grin, thinking of when they would meet again. "Are you going to remember that promise, Anchor?"

"Yes!" No doubt.

Shanks hummed, flipping his hat in his hands. A teasing smile appeared on his lips. "I don't think you will." Bullshit. Shanks  _knew_ he would remember.

"Yes I w—" Shanks cut him off by swiftly placing his signature straw hat on the boy's unruly black hair. He smiled when Luffy looked up at him, shock and confusion written on his face. His nakama were in no better condition, all of them were openly gapping at the display. Only Benn, Lucky Roo and Yassop wore calm expressions. They looked at each other, knowing smiles on their lips.

"This will help to remind you." Shanks continued, bending down to be eye level with the seven-year-old who he had betted on without knowing. "It's my treasure so take care of it for me, okay? Return it when you've defeated me. This is our promise."

Luffy reached up and grasped the outer rim of the hat, pulling it down onto his face with a happy smile. "Yeah. Our promise."

Shanks flicked his nose playfully, earning a giggle from the younger. He stood up and looked over his shoulder at his nakama who were, by now, all crowed around the rail, trying to get a good look at what was happening. "OI! Boys! I'm taking Anchor back to his family, don't destroy anything while I'm gone!"

"AYE!" All of his crewmates shouted in response.

Shanks picked Luffy up, letting the boy sit on his shoulders. "Let's get you home now."

 

* * *

 

 

"Hey," Marco suddenly muttered, looking out on the beach with narrowed eyes. "I think I see Akagami. Out on the beach."

Ace forced a growl down his throat. He had been a lot twitchier and more agitated since Luffy was gone. In fact, more of the crew stayed away from the fire user in fear of their lives being taken away. "What does he want? We don't have time for his stupid meeting right now."

"Let's go see," Marco said calmly, closing his eyes to let his blue flames flicker to life under his pale skin. Soon, two beautiful, blue fire wings replaced his hands and he took off, Ace following closely behind.

They landed on the beach a few feet in front of the yonko, taking up defensive stances. Whitebeard didn't have time to deal with him at the moment. None of them did.

"Akagami," Marco greeted, a blank mask appeared over his face. Though Ace saw right through it; noticing the tense muscles and the slight twitch in his left eye. "To what do we owe this pleasure?"

“Oh, Marco!” the man grinned. “Join me cre—”

“ _No.”_

Shanks pouted for a second before the playful grin came back to his face. "I believe I found something that was yours."

Before either of the men had time to question a small pale and red blob flew at them, rubber limb wrapping around their feet several times. They both stared at the boy who had been the cause of their worries for over a week now, sobbing and muttering gibberish.

Ace was the first to react. "Luffy!" He cried out, untangling the limb and picking the boy up, pulling him into a tight embrace. He pushed the boy away for a second, staring into the boy's slightly red eyes. "Where were you? Why are you with Akagami? We were so worried!"

Luffy rubbed his nose and eyes, trying to get the tears to go away. "Sorry," He squeaked out as Ace pulled him into another hug and Marco ruffled his hair. "There was this really mean kid and he stabbed me with a knife and it really hurt and he was about to kill me but Shanks came and saved me," He hiccupped. "Their doctor said I couldn't leave even though I knew that I would worry you. Sorry. Sorry."

"Someone stabbed you?" Flames danced on Ace's shoulders, his dark eyes narrowing. Marco had to put a hand on his shoulder to make sure Ace didn't run off and track down the person that hurt their little brother.

"Uh-huh," Luffy nodded, looking back at Shanks. "But Shanks saved me and we made a promise and he gave me his straw hat until we completed that promise."

The flames flickered out and Ace sighed, shifting Luffy in his arms so he had a free hand. He ran his fingers through his hair, feeling how greasy it was. He looked Shanks in the eyes, this time with no hostile intent. "Thank you, I guess. We don't know what we would've done without our little brother."

Shanks laughed. "He was fun to have around the ship. Never thought I'd meet a kid like him in a long time."

Even Marco cracked a grin. "He's pretty special, isn't he?”

"Very special." Shanks agreed. He stretched his arms over his head, sighing in content. "Well, I guess I should be going now. Don't forget our promise, okay Anchor?"

"I won't!" The seven-year old declared with a happy smile.

"Good," Shanks started to walk away, grinning even more when he heard Luffy call out 'bye Shanks!' as loud as he could, drawing the attention of his own crew.

He heard the shout of surprise, some cheers and—was that someone crying? Shanks snorted, but he was glad for the brat.

He had finally returned home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i just caught up with the op manga (for the first time in years oop) and every time sanji cried so did i holy shit


	7. Chapter 7

"THATCH! LUFFY!" A voice called out in the early morning. "GIVE MY BACK MY DAMN LEFT SHOES!"

Behind a barrel up on deck, the said boys were laughing at the latest prank they pulled. The older Luffy got, the more fun it was for Thatch. Luffy was small and fast so he could help pull off things that Thatch could never dream of pulling off, such as stealing Fossa and his division's left shoes. Honestly, it was a simple prank, but it worked. And it was hilarious to everyone else.

Thatch had to shove Luffy's face into the wooden floor to keep the child from blowing their cover as Fossa and several of his division mates came up on the deck, surprising Ace from a narcoleptic attack.

Of course, all of them only had one shoe on or they didn't have shoes at all. Most came out in their white or multi-colored socks that were reasonably strange. The cook even swore that one of the men was wearing kitten socks.

He had to bit his lip to keep from laughing as Fossa charged Ace, grabbing the fire user by his pants (since he never seems to wear a shirt) and shook him until the man's knife fell from it's sheath. "WERE ARE THEY?" He practically roared. "YOU BETTER NOT BE INVOLVED IN THIS, PORTGUS, OR I'M GOING TO RIP YOUR HEAD OFF AN THROW IT IN THE OCEAN!"

This is why Thatch and Luffy loved to prank the 15th division commander—he always gave the best reactions to things. Though, the only downside is when they get caught. He really beats them up pretty bad (Luffy not as much, seeing as he's only eight and everyone believes that Thatch is mind-controlling the boy to do his bidding). The commander can really pack a punch; luckily he hasn't pulled out his sword and set it on fire like he does when he's  _pissed._

"Thatch, lemme go!" Luffy hissed quietly, struggling against the hand that was pinning him to the deck. He was probably tired of his face being squashed into the deck anyway . . .

Thatch released his hand and the eight-year-old popped right back up, trying to catch his breath. When he did, the boy gave the older man a dull glare. "That was mean!" he whispered. "Meanie Thatch!"

"I'm not a meanie," Thatch hissed back. "Who's the reason that you aren't caught yet? Me!"

"Stingy!" the boy protested, this time a bit louder than Thatch would've liked. Fossa and his division commanders didn't seem to notice, seeing as they were all too busy harassing Ace.

Thatch almost felt bad for the fire-user.

Almost.

He wished he had a video den-den mushi.

"I’m boooo _orrreddd_ ," Luffy sang quietly, crossing his small arms over his chest. "Thatch, can I go now?"

"If you want to get caught by Fossa, go right ahead." Thatch replied easily, keeping his eyes on his poor victims. "Let's see how badly that'll end."

"Jackass," Luffy muttered, lips forming into a pout that only the eight-year-old knew how to make.

" _LEAVE ME ALONE_!" Ace finally snapped, increasing Thatch interest and keeping Luffy quiet for a few more minutes. "MOST OF THE TIME THEY HID BEHIND THOSE BARRELS AFTER THEY'VE DONE A PRANK, OKAY? Jeeze," Ace huffed, pointing to the exact place that Thatch and Luffy were hiding at the moment. "Just because he's one of my best friends doesn't mean I help him with  _every_ prank he comes up with. Asshole."

"Damnit, Ace." Thatch cursed as he stood up from his hiding spot, offering a grin. Everyone spotted him immediately and sent him dark looks, Luffy included. "Well, what a nice day we're having, isn't it? I'll just be taking my leave now . . . " With that, he darted so fast off the deck that even Haruta would be jealous.

Luffy stood there blinking at the spot that his friend disappeared from. He was blissfully unaware of the murderous auras that hovered over him until he looked up. The eight-year-old, not even knowing that he was knocking on death's door, looked at Fossa straight in the eyes with a completely serious expression and said, "I didn't do it."

Fossa knew better that to hurt Luffy, so he settled for bending down to the boy's eye level (which was quite hard, mind you; he isn't exactly small.) "Luffy?" the said boy looked away from him, whistling innocently. "Luffy, look at me."

Slowly, Luffy turned his head and stared at the man in the eyes, squeaking out a small, "Sorry."

The older man sighed. "Stay away form Thatch when he's pranking, okay? He's a bad influence."

"Really?" Luffy tilted his head to the side, cutely. "But it's a lot of fun when me 'n Thatch are watchin' you scream."

" _What?"_

"Nothing!" Luffy cried out suddenly, covering his mouth with his hands. "I didn't say nothing."

"Luffy," Fossa warned. "Quit pranking our division. Now, where are our shoes?"

"Thatch threw half of them off the ship," Luffy informed them, ignoring the looks of rage that were suddenly appearing on the 15th division. "The other half are in the trashcan below deck."

Fossa groaned. "Why'd he throw them overboard?"

The boy blinked up at the man. "I think he said something about seeing them swim like ducks, but I'm not sure. Thatch just did it."

"And you laughed while he was doing this crime?" Fossa felt like he was interrogating the younger, though Luffy was being quite cooperative.

The boy giggled, throwing his hands over his lips to smother any sounds that would leave his mouth. "Yep! It was funny."

Fossa rolled his eyes, picking up Luffy's straw hat and slamming it onto the boy's head. Luffy just grinned up at him with a light that Fossa had never seen before he met Luffy. “You little shit.”

He had permanently changed them all, weather they knew it or not.

 

* * *

 

 

When the whistling of the cannonballs started, Luffy wasn’t worried. After all, attacks on the Moby Dick were common. People were always challenging Oyaji for his head and they’d comeback even after the crew kicked their asses.

 “Oi, Luffy, you going to come watch?” one of his siblings asked as they rushed past him, weapon in hand. Luffy grinned at them and jumped to his feet, racing after them.

 He wasn’t allowed to fight quite yet; his brothers didn’t trust his aim. He’d probably end up hitting an ally before he hit an enemy. Luffy didn’t care too much, though, because he was getting stronger. Soon he’d be able to fight with his family!

 “Marines!”

 On deck, everyone was running around, preparing for the battle. A few were grinning, making bets on how long it would take while others simply stared at the ship in annoyance. Luffy spotted Marco at the top of the crow’s nest, watching the ship carefully. Ace was leaning against the side of the rail, rolling his eyes. Seeing that neither of his brothers were worried, Luffy relaxed and jogged over to Oyaji.

 “Oyaji!” He hopped onto his giant father’s chair with a grin. His father welcomed him before going back to watching his sons prepare. The marine ship was only a few hundred meters away at this point and everyone was ready for the battle.

 “Prepare to board!” Whitebeard shouted, his voice echoing across the deck. Luffy’s family shouted their agreement in return, weapons raised high.

 The ships hit each other only minutes later and the battle raged on. Luffy laughed in joy as his siblings demolished the marines. So far, none of the marines had managed to step foot on the Moby Dick. Most of the commanders had taken a backseat and were instead focusing on better, more important things.

 Like playing poker on the sake barrel in Kingdew and Fossa’s case.

“Fire!”

The cry didn’t come from anyone he recognized and Luffy only had a moment to think before an explosion went off and the ship rocked violently to the side. He tumbled off of Oyaji’s chair and landed with an _ooof_ , bouncing on deck until he could regain control of his body.

“What was that?!”

“The Moby was hit!”

“Damn those marines!”

 In the confusion, the marines had taken the time to board the ship. The Whitebeard pirates were slowly loosing the advantage as another explosion went off. Luffy hand enough time to prepare himself so he didn’t fall again.

He wasn’t worried too much about the ship; it was Adam’s wood after all. Blamenco had explained that Adam’s wood was tougher than normal wood and could easily withstand gun fire and cannonballs. Besides, he knew the _Moby_ wasn’t too hurt in the attack. He didn’t know how he could tell, just something in his gut saying that she was alright. 

“A brat?” the voice shook him out of his thoughts and Luffy glanced up at the marine who easily towered over him. “What the hell?”

“I’m Luffy!” Luffy grinned at him. Before the marine could respond, Luffy punched him in the face and sent him over the side of the ship.

“Oi, Luffy! What the hell are you doing out here?” the boy was scooped into someone’s arms before he even got a chance to respond. Looking up, he saw Blenheim and grinned. The man’s massive sword hung in his other hand as he continued to slice down marines even after picking up the seven-year-old.

“Fell off of Oyaji’s chair!” Luffy grined at him before climbing the massive man’s back and sitting on his shoulders. Blenheim didn’t seem to mind at all and Luffy was enjoying the view.

“Damn these marines,” Blenheim muttered as he dodged another attack. Wrecking our ship like this. Blamenco isn‘t going to be happy.”

Luffy laughed, nodding. The ship’s main shipwright was good at what he did and while it was easy to fix, having to do this once a week was annoying to anyone. It felt like the _Moby Dick_ was always under construction.

Luffy shifted, trying to get a better position to see the battle. Briefly, he saw the large purple tattoo of his older brother. Happily, Luffy cried out, “Ace!”

The words fell deaf to the sound sounds of the battle. Blenheim turned to look and also spotted the second division commander in the crowd. Ace had his back turned to them, unaware.

Luffy spotted the danger before Blenheim did. “Ace, _watch out_!”

Two men—both strong, Luffy could feel it—were steadily approaching the second division commander. Ace, who was too distracted with his own battle, didn’t seem to know they were there.

“Ace!” Blenheim shouted, cutting down marines left and right as he tried to reach his friend. Luffy jumped down from the man’s shoulders and raced between the legs of the surrounding marines. He could see Ace ahead but was still too far away.

No—

“Ace!” They brought their weapons up and Luffy could see the Haki reflect in the sunlight. His eyes widened and his stomach dropped.

No, _no_ —

He had to stop them before—

But it was too late.

Everything seemed to go in slow motion as the marines brought their weapons down. Ace turned, eyes widening. He knew he didn’t have enough time to dodge.

No, no, _no, no, no_ —

“ _STOP IT!”_

A huge wave of Haki burst from his body, so strong that it cracked the rails. The battlefield was silent as those on deck fell to the ground, unconscious. Both marines and pirates couldn’t stand in the wake of the will that rocked the ship.

“Luffy…” Ace was looking at him and Luffy couldn’t tell that he was thinking. He stared at his hands for a moment before deciding that he didn’t _care._ Ace was safe and that was all that mattered.

“That was King’s Haki!”

“Oh _shit_! Whitebeard is pissed!”

“Retreat!”

It didn’t take long before the marines had gathered their dead and wounded and fled. The pirates didn’t chase them, instead choosing to stare at the eight-year-old that just displayed _King’s Haki_ of all things.

“Holy shit…” Thatch muttered.

Marco signed and rubbed his face. “Of all the things to have…”

Whitebeard laughed and gestured for Luffy to come. He did, not quite understanding why everyone was giving him weird stares. Whitebeard seemed took notice and smiled before turning to his sons, “Clean the deck! Tend to the wounded!”

“Aye!”

“Am I in trouble?” Luffy asked as he climbed his father’s chair.

“No, brat, you’re not in trouble.” Whitebeard told him. “You know what that was, right?”

“Haki,” Luffy said, nodding. “Like Oyaji and Ace’s Haki.”

“Yes,” Whitebeard smiled. “Marco too. That was King’s Haki. To unlock it so young… You’re strong, son.”

Luffy practically glowed under the praise, giggling. He pulled his hat over his head, barely covering the smile that spit his face. He was happy. “I learned from the best.”

Whitebeard laughed, standing up with the boy in his hand. “Come! Your King’s Haki training will start tomorrow.”

 

* * *

 

 

When Marco sighed for the fifth time one day at a bar, Luffy knew better to annoy him with his hunger. The man might've had a relatively calm temper, but Luffy could tell when he was about to snap. The little eight-year-old boy almost felt sorry for whom he was about to beat up.

Marco lifted him up on the barstool and ruffled his hair. "Stay here," He said before walking over to the door and slamming it open. Marco glanced back at the boy, “I’m serious, Luffy. Don’t move.”

With that, he was gone. Luffy didn't even remember what Marco said he was going to do—something about Thatch and fish.

The boy started picking at his food, suddenly not hungry anymore. He didn't like eating when he was alone—it felt wrong. There were other people at the bar, but none of them looked like people that Luffy would want to approach.

When ten minutes passed and Marco still hadn't show up to get him, Luffy was starting to get worried. He knew Marco was strong, and that really wasn't the problem. Luffy was starting to think that maybe,  _just maybe,_ the pineapple had forgot about him and everyone else was about to leave without him.

Some of the other men in the bar had taken a notice to the squirming boy and grinned evilly, not that Luffy had noticed. It wasn't until a hand wrapped around his waist that he felt the presence of other not-so-nice auras around him.

He yelped, struggling immediately. These hands were unknown. Foreign. Luffy didn't like it. Another hand came and wrapped itself around his small torso as he was yanked upwards, out of his seat.

He _definitely_ didn't like this.

"Aww," one of the men cooed with a sick grin on his face. "What a cute little boy we have here. Not a place for a child to be, y’know. Where's your mommy, kid?"

_Why does everyone ask that?_ Luffy thought, a frown coming on his face as he glared at the man that was trying to talk to him. "I don't have one, bastard."

"Oh?" another one of them grinned. "You've got a pretty big potty mouth for such a little boy."

"Shut up," Luffy snapped, struggling more ferociously than before. "Let me go!"

"Hmm," The man that was holding him whispered in Luffy's ear. "Boss would like something to have at the auction.”

Luffy didn't like the sound of that.

"I ain't your slave, jackass!" he yelled, aiming a kick for the man’s face. "I'm a pirate! Pirates are free!"

"Pirate, huh?" the man laughed. "How can a cute little thing like you be a harsh, ugly pirate? Us bandits are so much better."

Luffy snarled as the other men laughed. "Come on, kid. Let's get you cleaned up, hmm?"

Having enough, Luffy bit down on the man that was holding him, hard enough to draw blood. The man screamed and dropped him to the ground, yelling stuff that Luffy didn't care to understand.

_He had to get out of here._

He silently sent an apology to Marco as he ran for the front door of the bar. The phoenix had told him to stay here, but he wasn't about to become a slave for these filthy bandits.

Two of the men from earlier stepped in front of him, blocking his escape exit. Luffy snarled again, skidding to a stop right in front of them and even dodging one of their grubby hands as they tried to man-handle him again.

He turned around and darted for the back door, this time not even stopping when three other men stood in his way. He just barreled right through them, flinging the door off of its hinges.

He heard yelling behind him, but Luffy didn't look back. He just kept running towards the forest that lay in front of him. In the back of his head, the forest looked similar to the one that he had only vague memories of back before Ace, Marco and Thatch had found him.

He was pretty sure that going into the forest was a much better decision than going back to the town streets where the bandits could still be roaming around. The boy just kept running even after the sounds of the town were long gone, replaced by the birds chirping and leaves rustling under his feet.

Luffy didn't stop until he heard the giggling. It was quiet—almost non-existent, but it was close. Besides, whoever was in front of him didn't sound like a bandit. It sounded calming. Nice.

He let out a puff of air, trying to get his lungs to get the necessary air that they needed before he started stalking towards the quiet giggle. The tree line faded until a clearing reveled itself.

A small creak was on the other side, something that Luffy took note of. Even if it wasn't deep, things like that could be deadly to a devil fruit user. There were small rocks that littered around the clearing and one big rock in the center. On top of that rock was a woman with kind eyes.

She was around twenty with dark, black hair that reached down to her shoulders and piercing blue eyes that stared at him just as he stared back. A large book rested in her lap and her mouth curved into a small, yet forced smile.

She jumped down from the rock where she had been reading before and cautiously approached him. Feeling not malicious intent form her, Luffy let the woman approach.

When she was close enough, she bent down and ruffled his hair, something that Luffy was used to by now. After all, most of the commanders and other crewmembers messed with his hair frequently, especially Ace and Thatch.

 "Hello," her voice even sounded calming. "Are you lost?"

Luffy nodded his head a bit, causing the woman to giggle. Her vibrant blue eyes held amusement, though Luffy could see the pain that was lining around the edges. His expression turned confused. Who had hurt such a nice lady?

"My name is Robin," the woman—Robin said carefully, like she was expecting a reaction from him. Luffy had to say that the name sounded familiar, but he couldn't really place it. It was just a first name after all; there were probably a lot of Robin's on the Grand Line anyways.

"I'm Luffy!" He chirped out, forcing his confusion to the back of his mind. "Ne, Robin, what's your full name?"

"It's rude to ask for someone's full name when you haven't given yours first," Robin said, standing up and wrapping her slender arms around his wait, taking him up with her.

"Oops," Luffy giggled causing the woman to smile. "I don't know my full name. Everyone just calls me Luffy."

"Oh?" Robin's eyes sparkled. "Alright then. I suppose I should tell you my full name then?" Luffy nodded his head enthusiastically. "My name is Nico Robin."

The pieces clicked into place for Luffy. After all, the Devil Child's name was well known all around the world. Ace liked to talk about her and laugh, saying that they were one in the same. Luffy never really got what he was talking about.

"You're the Demon of Ohara, right?" Luffy knew it was the wrong the to say as soon as Robin's face became dark and her smile dropped. Luffy blinked, not understanding why she seemed to upset all of a sudden. "A monster?"

Robin bit her lip, her grip on Luffy's waist going slack as if she was letting him a chance to escape from her grasp. Luffy didn't want to move however, and stared at her face. "Yes," She replied quietly. "I am."

_Did the government cause this much pain?_

Rage coursed through his blood and even though he was only eight, he could understand the feeling of the world hating you. The government making up lies to cover the truth that they so desperately wanted to get rid of. Suddenly, Luffy smiled brightly, hugging her. His skinny arms wrapped around her neck. "Then we can be monsters together!"

 

* * *

 

 

Robin gasped when he didn't run away, screaming and crying. She was surprised when the kid's face went blank and assumed the worst so she hid her face.

But then he  _hugged_ her.

He had hugged her and told her that they could be monsters together.

Impossible. This was just a kid—an innocent naïve kid whom believed anything that someone told him. He didn't know about her truth. He didn't know about her lies. He didn't know about her past. He didn't know about  _her._

But he knew more than she originally thought.

"They'd always call me a monster," Luffy blabbed, his small arms tightening around her neck. Robin didn't mind. Didn't care. "Then when I found my family they called me even more of a monster. Said as long as I was with them, I was scum. The worst of the world." He pulled away and Robin was surprised to see him still smiling, even if there were tears in his eyes. "But I don't care anymore. They're my family. My nakama. As long as someone is there, I don't care."

He understood her, but not completely. She didn't have nakama. Didn't have a family.

"Some people are just stupid," Luffy said with such ferocity that it took Robin a second to digest what he had said. "They call us monsters just because we’re strong. Because we ate a devil fruit. Just because we're different."

Robin raised an eyebrow as her facade slowly coming back into place. "You have a devil fruit?"

The boy nodded and pulled on the side of his face, stretching it farther than humanly possibly. "I ate the gomu-gomu no mi. I’m a rubber-man." he blinked up at her. "Do you have a devil fruit?"

Hesitating for a brief second, Robin freed one of her arms and created a few more, making it look like a pinwheel. "I ate the hana-hana no mi."

Luffy gapped at her arm, his eyes sparkling with a sense of joy that Robin had never seen. "That's so cool! You can make parts of your body?!"

Robin nodded, allowing a small smile to appear on her lips. This child has different. Not like the rest.

For a second, she wondered just what had changed him.

 

* * *

 

Thatch was a pain in the ass. End of discussion. Not only was the 4th Division Commander causing havoc in the food market, scaring away all the owners, but he was also supposed to be _back on the ship,_ not walking around as if he wasn't in any sort of trouble what-so-ever. Besides, Marco doubted that Fossa and his division would be happy to see the man after the recent . . . incident regarding left shoes and whatnot.

So, Marco decided that the direct approach would be best and grabed Thatch's ear before dragging him over to an alley (to _politely_ give him one of the biggest scoldings he's ever going to receive). The cook had flailed and whined the whole way, trying to struggle out of Marco's steel grasp. "Marco! _Ouch_ , Marco, that's my ear! Let me go! It was an accident, I swear! Come on!"

"Thatch," Marco dropped him, watching as he fell to the floor with a thud, cradling his injured ear. "You have ten seconds to explain why the _hell_ you aren't on that ship and instead scaring all the people in the market place, yoi?"

"They're all weanies," Thatch replied evenly, standing up and brushing his white outfit off, frowning a bit when he noticed a mud stain in it. "Besides, I had this really weird feeling . . . " he trailed off, looking Marco in the eyes. "I was looking for you."

_Everyone_ knows that Thatch's instincts were spot on, even Marco. So when Thatch is out looking for Marco, complaining that he had this weird feeling, Marco knows it's something serious. Whitebeards have been trained to always expect the worst but sometimes that worst manages to sneak up on them and when it does, it's disastrous.

"Why, yoi?"

"I don't know yet," Thatch shook his head. "I got a headache around an hour ago and then started feeling antsy about twenty minutes ago so I hopped off the ship and came looking for you." Thatch let out a sigh, covering his face with one of his hands. "I looked around the island a bit and even talked to the locals, but the only thing they could tell me was about a small group of bandits that supposedly live up on the top of the mountain."

"Bandits?" Marco hated bandits, they were always trying to act tougher than they really were and honestly, Marco hasn't met a single bandit that was strong enough to be more than a plaything. 

Thatch nodded. "This group isn't rumored to be the nicest bunch. They'll come down every once in a while and children will start to disappear. Locals never see the kids again."

"And where are the marines?" Marco asked. This was a job for the marines. 

"Marines don't care," Thatch sighed. "That's what the villagers said. No one in their village is strong enough to go up against them, either. They're stuck unless they want to lose more lives."

Running his hand through his hair, Marco sighed and shook his head. "Not like we can do anything about it, yoi. I don't want to use our resources."

"I forgot how cruel you could be." Thatch teased.

"Pirate," Marco says evenly. Wasn't his problem and it didn't concern his family. 

"Honestly," Thatch continued, "With Luffy around, you're just a huge softie."

_Luffy._

Marco eyes widened as he thought about the child that he had left behind in the bar, all alone. Did he really leave Luffy there like that? " _Shit_! We're leaving."

Grabbing Thatch's arm, Marco practically drug the 4th division commander the whole way back to the bar, not stopping even when Thatch pulled away, yelling out things that Marco didn't care to understand.

_What was he thinking?_

"Stupid, stupid, _stupid_ ," he chastised himself, shaking his head repeatedly. If anyone in the bar so much as _looked_ at Luffy funny, he was going to go up to all of them and _kill_ them.

"Marco!" Thatch's yell snapped him out if his thoughts as he threw open the door to the bar. Thatch ran up behind him. "Marco, what're you doing?"

Marco ignored him, looking around the bar for his charge.

Luffy wasn't there.

Only a few men on the ground, groaning while the others looked rather pissed off. The poor owner was curled in a ball underneath a table as if he didn't want to be caught in the crossfire. Marco almost felt bad for the mad.

_Almost._

Behind him, Thatch whistled, surveying the damage. "Hey, quite the bar-fight, eh?"

Once again, Marco ignored him. Instead, he marched over to one of the men that was still standing (and a little bit drunk) and snarled, " _Where is he?"_

The man glared at him, trying to slam Marco's head with a beer bottle. "I ain't got no idea who you're talkin' bout." Marco caught the beer bottle with his other hand and shattered in into pieces. "Lemme go you bastard."

"Let my men go," another voice snarled, a sword coming out of nowhere, trying to slash him in two. "You wanna deal with my men? You can 'n deal with _me_ first."

"Bold words for an idiot, yoi" Marco said, dropping the man that he was holding. The man just scurried behind his savior, whispering thank you's and graveling at the man's feet like some type of dog. "Are you sure you want to fight me? I only asked a question."

"And what might that question be?" The boss unsheathed his sword and beside him, Thatch did the same. "You were threating my men, so you better have a good answer if you want to keep your pathetic life."

_Ohh_ , Marco was going to enjoy knocking this guy off of his pedestal. "I asked—Where is he? _Where is Luffy_?"

"We ain't know a Luffy," The boss narrowed his eyes. "You're accusing us of somethin'?"

"You're bandits, are you not?" Marco asked, watching as they all nodded their head proudly. "Are you live in the mountains, right?" They nodded again. "Seems like you've been causing trouble, yoi. Now, I'm going to ask again. What did you do to my seven-year-old brother?"

A spark of realization flashed in the man's eyes and apparently this man had a death wish. "Pftt. That kid? That's who you're getting' worked up over?" He grinned at his men. "We were just havin' some fun with 'em.But then he had to get all worked up and stared screamin' stuff about being a pirate and bein' free. Bunch of bullshit. Brat got away, though. Right through the back door. He injured some of—"

Marco never let the man finish his sentence, snapping his neck and killing the man almost instantly. "You should've never even looked at the kid." 

There were cries out outrage as the other bandits picked up their weapons and charged. Marco didn't even move, letting Thatch take care of these. There was no doubt that Thatch wanted them dead as much as he did.

It took another minute at most until all the bugs were killed. Thatch sheathed his sword, an angry frown on his face. "Come on, Marco. We should try and find him before he get's himself lost."

"He's probably already lost, yoi" Marco said, feeling the rush of adrenaline slowly exiting his system, leaving him tired. Thatch chuckled dryly, walking straight out of the bar, leaving the poor bartender to clean up the bodies.

"Then let's go find him before he does something stupid, eh?"

"Probably already did that, too."

 

* * *

 

 

"Are you sure you don't want to join us, Robin?" Luffy had asked for the tenth time in the past hour as they reached the edge of the forest. "We'd all love to have you."

She set the boy on the ground, squatting so she could see his dark eyes that sparkled with so much life that it made Robin a bit envious. "I can't." She replied. "I have to complete my dream, okay?"

"But we could help you," Luffy pretested, wrapping his arms around his waist and not letting go. "All of us—Marco, Thatch, Haruta, even Oyaji!"

She detached the pitiful looking boy from her waist. "I'm sorry Luffy."

_I'd get you hurt. There are too many enemies in my dream._

He looked at her with the 'puppy-dog eyes of doom' and Robin sighed, not wanting to upset the young boy. "Luffy, I can't. Maybe one day we'll meet again."

The boy's face lit up. "Really? Promise, Robin?"

He held out his pinky finger, looking at her expectantly. Robin quietly laughed, crossing pinkies with the boy. "When you grow up, come and find me. I'll be waiting."

_If you still accept me. If you'll still love me._

"It's a promise!" he declared happily. "One day, I'll set out and find you, Robin! Then we can beat up your enemies together, right?"

He grinned with such light that Robin didn't really want to agree. What if someone dimmed it?

What if someone would dim his smile?

But he had latched onto her and he wasn't letting go just yet. He wouldn't let her leave. "Yes, we can."

The next thing Luffy said was one thing that Robin would carry with her for the rest of her life. "Life might end, but nakama are forever! You're my nakama, Robin!"

_"There is nothing more ridicules than being in this world alone! Someday you'll meet brave friends who will protect you. Go and live with them Robin!"_

No. She couldn't. Not yet.

For she still had a dream to complete.

Enemies to defeat.

A life to survive.

She stood up and left, after he said that, giving him one last pat on the head. She didn't even realize she was crying until she felt something warm drip down her cheeks. She gently touched her face, fascinated by the emotions that she hadn't shown in years.

Was that boy really her friend?

Or was he just another fake?

But that smile—no, it was too real to be fake. Those sparkling eyes were too magical to be pretend.

She finally had her first nakama.

A little boy that would grow into something that the world has never seen before.

 

* * *

 

"Luffy!" Thatch cried out as the spotted the boy almost an hour later. Said boy looked up, looking around for the person that called his name. When he spotted Marco and Thatch, Luffy practically lit up and ran towards them at full speed. "Where have you been? We've been looking everywhere for you!"

Luffy clung to Marco's leg, murmuring things that neither commander understood. Marco bent down and scooped the boy up. Luffy shifted around a bit until he could look up at Marco. "I'm sorry! I broke our promise. There were these really men guys and they had swords and they were going to—"

"Hey," Marco cut him off. "Luffy, it's okay, yoi. You did good, you know that? We'd rather have you leave then go with those men. You're okay now. You're safe. We won't let them hurt you."

Thatch coughed something that sounded suspiciously like, _softie_ in his fist, grinning at Marco with an unreadable expression.

Marco shot a glare at the man, hoisting Luffy onto his shoulders so the child could see the town without having to worry about bandits."So, Lu. Do you find anything cool, yoi?"

Luffy hummed. "I got a new nakama!"

"Did you?" Marco knew how much it meant for Luffy to meet a new friend, though he was surprised that the boy didn't drag whomever it was back with him.

"Yeah," Luffy was practically glowing by now. "Her name's Robin. She's really pretty! And smart. She was all alone so I went up and said hi. She was really lonely."

"Was she, now?"

"Yep!" Luffy wrapped his arms around Marco head. "She helped me find my way back to town and stuff. I asked her to come with me, but she said no because she had a dream and stuff. We did make a promise!"

"Oh?" Thatch decided to join in on the conversation. "And what might that promise be this time?"

Luffy thought about it for a second. "Well, she said that when I was older I had to come and find her and then she'd join us!" There was a pause. "I think Ace would really like her. They're a lot alike except Ace isn't as smart." 

* * *

Somewhere back on the Moby Dick, Ace sneezed, looking rather annoyed.

Marshal D. Teach laughed. "Seems like someone's been talkin' bout you, Commander Ace!"

Ace rolled his eyes, his voice full of sarcasm. " _Wonderful."_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> mmmm  
> honestly one of the things that I love about op is that they are not good people. even luffy, who doesn't really go out of his way to kill people from what we've seen has caused the death of hundreds and thats? really interesting? because you have so many stories where the protagonist is the hero and everyone love him, etc. Luffy, who's not a exactly a terrible person, is selfish and not afraid to use force to get what he wants. Its an awesome way to spin a story


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is like my least favorite chapter tbh and i kept forgetting to upload it so now its two days late,,, whoops

"Hey, Luffy," Ace called out, stretching his hands over his head as he stared up at the stars. Ace had night watch that night and Luffy, not wanting his brother to be out there alone, came with him. Luffy didn't really stay up like he did, pretty much falling asleep as soon as his head hit Ace's stomach. Ace didn't really mind this, however. In fact, he enjoyed the presence of his little brother, even if the little boy was about to pass out.

"Hmm?" The nine-year-old little boy lifted his head, blinking up at Ace with those huge, tried, owl-like eyes that normal held so much light that it was impossible to be sad around him.

"Have I ever told you about my hometown?" The fire-user asked, even if he knew the answer already.

"Nope," the boy yawned, snuggling into Ace's bare stomach as if he were trying to get comfortable.

"Really?" the fire user grinned up at the sky. "I guess it wasn't really a home-town . . . more of a jungle. I grew up with mountain bandits."

"That explains your personality," Luffy muttered, eyes still closed.

Ace whapped the boy's head. "Oi. That was uncalled for," Luffy shook trying to hold in his giggles. "But they were pretty nice—Dadan and her gang. They acted like they didn't care but they did take in me 'n Sabo back when . . . " His voice tried off, lowing at the thought of his long-lost brother. Sabo didn't deserve that. All he wanted to do was to be free.

"Who's Sabo?" Luffy’s voice was laced heavily with sleep and for a second, Ace hesitated. Sabo wasn't someone that Ace would go around and talk about but…

The fire-user thought about how he could answer this question, trying not to give too much away. "Sabo was my brother." seeing Luffy's expression, he elaborated. "Before I met Oyaji and everyone. Sabo was really the first person to accept me for me. He died, though. Back when we were ten."

"How?"

"A Celestial Dragon," Ace muttered bitterly, not trying to hide his hate for the bastards. "I didn't see it, but one of the bandits did. Said that Sabo's boat was shot down just because. There wasn't a reason."

"Assholes…" Luffy muttered with a frown. The boy had heard tales of them, of course, but the commanders and his other brothers always kept him as far away from the Celestial Dragons as they could. Luffy is the only one of the ship that hadn't met on in real life and everyone planned to keep it this way.

They wouldn't let something as terrible as a Celestial Dragon taint their baby brother.

"The worst," Ace agreed. "But Sabo, he died without freedom. We made a promise to become pirates when we were seventeen, but something happened and Sabo had to set sail early. He didn't even make it out of the harbor. It's cruel, but it's reality. People who don't deserve power are on top."

"I thought Oyaji liked Sengoku."

"Oyaji  _respects_ him, not likes him." Ace corrected the younger. "Sengoku is possibly the only one with power that fair about it. He just does what he's supposed to do and as pirates, we respect that. It's people like Akainu that we don't like."

"Akainu?" Ace watched as Luffy furrowed his eyebrows, trying to figure out where that name came from.

"Akainu is an admiral. Admiral Sakazuki." Ace answered with a yawn. "He's... bad. Keeps going on about this stupid 'absolute justice' of his and will kill anything in his path. He doesn't care about nakama—" Luffy let out a silent growl. "—doesn't care about loss of lives as long as he achieves what he wants."

"Why does he have that much power then?"

"Because people are blind to the world. They can't detect truth from a lie, reality from fake. It's just like the Celestial Dragons—everyone worships them and no one goes against them."

Luffy hummed, making Ace's chest vibrate as he settled back down onto the fire-user's stomach. "People are stupid then."

Ace looked at the child that they had raised since four, able to see more of how the world actually works more than a grown man. For a second, a ghost of a smile appeared on Ace's face as the boy slowly drifted off to sleep. "Very."

 

* * *

 

 

It was one of those times that Thatch had a brilliant plan and someone walked by and ruined the surprise. It was also one of those times where Thatch lucked out and found that it was only Haruta, one of the only commanders other than Ace and himself that likes to pull a good prank every once in a while.

"What are you doing?" she asked, crossing her arms over his flat chest. Her sword clicked quietly as if waiting to be used.

Moving fast, Thatch put a hand over her mouth and pulled her down, pointing at the men's quarters. "Shhh! We can't wake them up yet!"

She removed Thatch's hand and hissed back, "What are you going to pull now?"

"I'm going to put fireworks in Jozu's shower," Thatch grinned with this maniac grin that would make any normal man fear for their lives. "He stole my hair jell yesterday without asking so this is revenge."

"Remind me not to get on your bad side," Haruta blinked. "Though this sounds like fun, need any help?"

"Luffy's distracting Jozu while I sneak in and put the fireworks down his drain." Thatch answered. "If this works, the fireworks will react to the water and explode. The bottom of the shower—if we're lucky—should hit Jozu right when the sun doesn't shine."

"You know his crotch is made of diamonds, right?"

" . . . Shut up," Thatch complained. "Diamonds or not, it still hurts to be hit there. Trust me on this, okay? Luffy's the only one who doesn't think it hurts."

"Yeah, but he's rubber."

" _Exactly,"_ Thatch agreed, pulling another grin. "Therefore, we can use him as bait while we go and set up the real trap, hmm?"

"Thatch, you evil genius." Haruta quietly laughed. "Alright, count me in. We've got a shower to blow up."

 

* * *

 

 

"Luffy." Izo said for the forth time today, trying to get his pupil to listen to him for  _once._ They had been training for an hour—Luffy had lost interest when they stopped starring so Izo could work on the nine-year-old's aim. "Luffy, will you  _please_ pay attention?"

"Hmm?" The boy tore his eyes away from the ocean that stretched for miles around them. "Oh, sorry Izo, there was this really distracting whale. It was doing really cool flips and stuff."

"Luffy, you see whales all the time," Izo said, trying not to let his irritation seep through. "You do not, however, train all the time, so  _pay attention._ If you don't learn how to aim, then you can't fight Shanks, okay?"

That got the boy's attention. He looked at Izo with big eyes that seemed to sparkle in the sunlight. "Whaaa? What'd you mean I can't fight Shanks?"

"You'd end up hitting one of us, not your target," Izo sighed. "I don't think that Jiru wants another punch in the stomach, agreed?"

"He seemed fine."

"Yeah, until you left. Then he was out for the rest of the day. I don't think he was really hurt, though; just trying to get out of his chores."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Izo said, throwing a plate up in the air and catching it with mastered grace. "Now, down to training. I'm going to throw this plate into the air and you're going to punch it, all right? It's one piece of meat off your next meal for every miss."

"Ehhhhhh?" Luffy whined, looking like the world was coming crashing down. "Hey! You can't take away my meat!"

"I will if you don't hit the plate," Izo threatened. "And then we're going to work on armament haki, alright?"

Slightly sulking, the nine-year-old pouted but nodded all the same.

"Good," Izo readied the plate and Luffy took up a defensive position. It was good; slightly off balance, but no of the other commanders could seem to correct it. It was like Luffy was creating his own fighting style.

"Go!" Throwing two plates up in the air, the cross dresser watched as Luffy hit one on the side, knocking it away and the other right in the bulls eyes. Izo clapped, knowing that they boy was improving quite a lot. At first, he couldn't even hit something that was a foot in front of him.

They repeated the process a few times, Luffy only missing three of them. Izo, roughly impressed by his display, told him that he wouldn't take away the nine-year-old's meat for now, but he had to show him how he was doing on his Armament Haki and if he was making any progress at all.

Luffy took up his strange defense position once again, putting his rubbery fist out in front of him. Izo leaned against the mast as he watched the boy concentrate, trying to active his haki.

Luffy was rather good at Observation Haki, but his armament was lacking. Around a year ago, the Whitebeard pirates also found out that, surprisingly, their little brother possessed King's Haki as well. It was a shock to all of them.

Luffy grunted, grinning slightly as his fist turned a shinny black color. His eyes lit up in a way the made Izo know that the kid was proud of himself, proudly showing off his Haki to everyone who was around.

Ace, who had been on deck watching, grinned and said that he was getting stronger every day. Luffy seemed to practically glow at his compliment.

After making sure that everyone saw his progress, the small boy bounded right back over to Izo, saying the one thing that the cross dresser had been expecting the whole time. "Can we eat now?"

Picking the kid up and slinging him over his shoulders—ignoring the muffled protests— Izo grinned. "Yeah, sure. Let go get you some food, brat."

 

* * *

 

 

Luffy was  _pissed._ And when Luffy was pissed, all hell broke loose.

Not only did the government have the gall to kidnap some of the Whitebeard crewmates, they also had to go and  _torture_ them until they couldn't move. Luffy saw red, blatantly ignoring everyone when they had screamed for him to come back.

The pirates had stopped at an island when their stock had gotten dangerously low and despite it being a marine island, they really had no choice.

It was almost an hour after Luffy had gotten back onto the ship after his exploring expedition (that he didn’t get permission for) that he had heard the news; members where disappearing. Thankfully, none of the commanders where gone yet, something that everyone was grateful for.

Almost immediately, Oyaji had launched a counter attack on the marine base, trying to free their downed comrades. Luffy had snuck out when no one was looking and went to join the fight.

Ace spotted him right away, yelling at him to go back to the ship, but Luffy ignored him, taking out the nearest marine with a well aimed, 'gumo-gumo no pistol' to the stomach. The marine has dropped to the ground, lifeless.

It was then that the other marines started ganging up on the boy, throwing things like knives and swords trying to see what would hurt him. In a fit of rage, Luffy had let loose some of his King's Haki, successfully knocking out the marine officers and ending the fight.

After a while of worrying over the boy, they had finally decided that the government didn't get any information on Luffy.

Oh, how wrong they were.

 

* * *

 

 

Sengoku knew it was going to be a long day the moment Garp broke down his door, saying that the Whitebeard Pirates had taken out, yet another, marine base. Looking up from his numerous amounts of papers, Sengoku watched as his long-time friend sat in the chair across from his desk. "I know."

"Che," Garp said, placing a hand over his face. "The brats should’ve know better than to mess with Whitebeard. This was a disaster waiting to happen."

"Apparently they didn't get the message," Sengoku said flatly, re-reading over the report. "Though there was something thing pretty interesting . . . "

"Hmm?" His old friend lifted his head, eyes sparkling with curiously. "And what might that be?"

"You know those ridiculous reports of a child being on board the Moby Dick?" Sengoku asked, shuffling through the stack of papers, trying to find the one that he was looking for. "Well, apparently, those reports are true." He handed Garp a picture of the child that was fighting alongside 'Fire-Fist Ace'. "It's interesting, really. Why would Whitebeard take in a child? It's a glaring weakness."

"Whitebeard is known for treating everyone like sons," Garp shrugged, grinning. "Maybe this kid had a bad past and Whitebeard decided to help him."

"Doesn't explain how he's able to fight so well," Sengoku said, eyes narrowing. "At the skill level he's at right now, you'd think they'd been training him for years."

"Maybe they have," his friend answered. "They could've been keeping him a secret from the outside world."

"That would be hard," Sengoku mused, rubbing his beard. "But I guess not impossible."

Garp laughed, slamming the picture on to the desk. "Anything else?"

Sengoku slid the report towards the vice-admiral. "Says the kid has King's Haki."

" _What?"_

Sengoku knew that this was an important detail. If they didn't get rid of this . . .  _problem_ soon, then the boy could grow up to be a huge threat to the government. A kid having enough control over King’s Haki to knock out Grand Line marines…

"Some lower-ranking marines were attacking him when suddenly they all fell to the ground, unconscious. The vice-admiral at the base saw it happen. He's the one who's been delivering the reports."

"What a nightmare." Garp laughed. "They just keep coming, eh?"

"This war has gone on for far too long," Sengoku muttered in return. "Eventually all this bloodshed needs to end."

"War never ends," Garp reminded him, standing up from his chair and starching. "Hey, Senny."

"What?"

"What's his name—you know, the child?"

Sengoku frowned, looking at the papers once more. "Luffy, apparently. That's what the commanders were calling him."

"Luffy?" Garp's eyes widened as he thought of the day so many years ago. No, that wasn't right. Luffy was dead. Luffy was gone. Luffy wasn't a pirate.

He snatched the picture from Sengoku's desk, ignoring his friend's slightly startled look. "Is there something wrong, Garp?"

"I'm leaving," Garp practically stormed out of the room, trying to control his ragged breathing. He slammed open the doors of the balcony on the top floor of Marineford, looking out into the vast ocean of the Grand Line. "Luffy? Is it really you?"

He looked at the picture of the boy—smiling, bright faced with a small scar under his left eye. Suddenly, Garp felt older than he has in such a long time. "Where have you been all these years?"

_Monkey D. Luffy._


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i wrote this entire story in past tense so now trying to add stuff to it is physically painful bc i hate writing in past tense

 

_Ohhhh_ , Garp was  _pissed._

Very, very,  _very_ pissed.

Part of the reason was, yes, his job, and then fact that Sengoku was being an absolute  _asshole._ Complete and utter asshole.

An enraged—practically murderous—aura surrounded the old man. It had been a  _year._

A year since he found out his grandson is somehow alive. A year since he's been able to go out of this goddamn marine base because  _someone_ didn't want him interacting with the enemy.

Clutching the morning newspaper in his fists, Garp held in a snarl, not completely believing what he was reading.

Luffy had a  _bounty._

 

* * *

 

 

When Marco read the morning paper the next day, he didn't believe it. At first, there was just a bunch of boring things such as pirate attacks and such. Nothing really caught his eyes other than a pirate group was currently invading Fishman Island.

Oyaji wasn't going to like that.

He was tearing the article out to give to Oyaji when something fluttered from the last page that Marco had yet to read. His curiosity got the better of him, so he picked up what looked like the back of the wanted poster and flipped it over, curious to see if it was anyone interesting.

As it turns out, it was a very interesting person indeed.

The blonde's face turned into a wide grin, looking at the number under that grinning face that the Whitebeard Pirates have come to adore.

_Luffy._

Huh. It wasn't a bad first bounty, either.In fact, it was even more impressive that the person that the government wanted so badly was ten. Marco supposed that growing up with Whitebeard and not dying meant that you were pretty strong. Marco walked towards the gallery, fully intent on sharing the news with  _everyone._

The sound of laughing and plates clicking reached the blonde's ears as he continued to walk down the wooden hallway below deck. Marco stopped at the door, glancing down at the paper that would no doubt be ripped up in all the excitement.

Their little brother was growing up so fast.

Marco snorted, pushing open one of the doors and walked in. He almost immediately spotted Ace and Luffy who were no doubt having an eating contest like they did _every_ morning while Thatch was making a betting poll in the background.

Grinning evilly, Marco walked over to Ace and tapped the fire-user on his shoulder. Of course, all he got was a, 'give me a second'. Marco snorted and whapped his little brother on the head with the newspaper on his hand.

Ace turned to glare at him, his mouth still full of food. The blonde simply rolled his eyes and showed Ace the bounty poster, making sure that no one else took notice of it yet.

The reaction was instantaneous.

Ace practically choked on his food, spitting all of it out on the nearest commander who happened to be Curiel. Ignoring Curiel's angry protests and the annoyed groans of the people that had bet on the second division commander, Ace snatched the paper and read it over at least four times. Looking up, Ace's expression was unreadable. " _Please,_ tell me this is a joke."

Holding in a laugh, Marco shook his head. "No, I found it in the papers this morning. I'm pretty sure there's an article about it, but I didn't read that far."

By now, the other pirates were gathering around the raven-haired male, pushing and shoving each other out of the way.

"He's  _ten!"_ Ace smacked the paper before reading it again. "Extremely dangerous? This is bullshit!"

Luffy had stopped eating, looking over Ace's shoulder curiously. He couldn't see the paper very well with the herd of pirates that all wanted to see what got the fire-user so agitated. They all knew it was about Luffy, after all, who else on the ship was ten?

 Marco shrugged. "Actually he is pretty dangerous, but only to his enemies. It's pretty accurate, yoi."

"The  _hell_ it is!"

"Ace," the blonde chastised. "Don't you think you're overreacting just a bit? It was going to happen eventually; he lives with us after all."

"He's  _ten!"_

"You've already said that," Marco rolled his eyes.

"Ace?" Luffy tried to climb up his back, but only slid back down. Ace turned around, some of the fire in his eyes flickering away. "What's wrong?"

"The fucking marines are what's wrong!" smoke started steaming from the fire-user's shoulders. Luffy and some other pirates backed off just a bit, in fear that they might get burned. "Putting bounties on ten- _fucking-_ year old kids!"

Whispers started to erupt. Some were smiling; finally getting what was making Ace so upset, while others were obviously as upset as the fire-user himself.

"Eh?" clearly, Luffy didn't quite understand what Ace was talking about. It's not like the expected the boy to, after all, he's rather slow when it comes to anything that doesn't have to do with eating or combat.

Ace simply shoved the paper in the boy's face, watching with narrowed eyes (he was still rather unhappy) as Luffy fumbled around with the paper, trying to see just what made his big brother unhappy.

"Flip the page," Ace held back a snarl, knowing if Luffy heard it, the boy would think that Ace was mad at him and everyone knew just how badly that would end. The boy blinked up at Ace, giving him a small grin as he turned the page.

"Ehhhhh?!" Luffy exclaimed, jumping out of his seat and grinning at the paper. "This is so cool! Ace! Ace! I have a bounty now!"

" _Great."_ Ace's voice was full of sarcasm (not that Luffy could tell), as he turned and buried his head into his hands.

The boy jumped off the table, fully intent on showing everyone his new discovery. In the background, Ace heard some laughs along with yells and a few happy noises that the fire-user couldn't quite recognize.

“Congratulations, Luffy!”

“You’re finally a big kid now!”

“That’s our little brother!”

“Oi, oi! Start making more food, bring the drinks! This calls for a party!”

Marco grinned at Ace with those lazy eyes. "Shouldn't we go?"

"Why?"

"They're going to throw a party," Marco reasoned. "Are you sure you want to miss out on all of that food?"

"No," Ace moaned into his hands.

Marco grabbed his shoulder and gave a quick tug to make sure the fire-user knew he was serious. "Act exited. For Luffy, alright?"

With a sigh, Ace stood up and headed towards the door. "Alright. For Luffy."

 

* * *

 

 

Somewhere on a deserted island back in the Grand Line, a certain redhead was still recovering from his latest hangover, completely oblivious to the news. Benn Beckman, however, was quietly reading the morning newspaper, grinning when a certain paper fell out.

He picked up the paper and his grin doubled. "Oh? Brat finally got a bounty? I was wondering when the marines would notice."

The man stood up, walking over and kicking his captain in the side. Shanks whined in his sleep and rolled over, but did not wake. Benn rolled his eyes, kicking the man again. And again. And again.

"Okay! Okay!"  Shanks yelped, rubbing sleep out of his eyes and massaging his forehead. "I'm up. Damn, my head hurts."

"Shouldn't have drank that much, Captain." Been said, throwing the paper towards him. "Found something interesting in the newspaper that you might like."

"Eh?" Shanks flipped through the pages, not noticing what Benn had. "Why'd you give me a paper about some rookie?"

"Flip the page, moron."

"Oh?" Shanks picked up the wrinkled, yellow paper. A grin etching on his face every-so-slightly. "Seems like our little anchor is getting more infamous every year."

 

* * *

 

 

 

Robin smiled sadly at the paper, wondering if Luffy was happy with this. She knew that when she got her first bounty, it was not something to celebrate. But, perhaps, Luffy's case was different?

The raven-haired woman shivered as a cold wind whipped around his, making her clothes flutter in the wind. Her only response was to wrap her coat even tighter around her shoulders, wishing she was somewhere warmer.

"Luffy," She called out softly, knowing that no one could hear her voice. No one ever could. No one but  _him._ "I wonder if you still remember our promise. . . ?"

* * *

 

**Dead or Alive**

**Mugiwara no Luffy**

**70,000, 000**

* * *

 

"Oyaji," Marco opened the door to his captain's sleeping quarters, cautiously peeking his head him. Whitebeard looked at him, giving the man a small, welcoming, smile. "We have some rather bad news."

"Oh?" Whitebeard raised an eyebrow. "And what would that be?"

"Ah," Marco brought up the morning's newspaper, throwing it up at Whitebeard. "Some big-shot supernova thought it would be a good idea to attack Fishman Island and they're currently causing a whole lot of chaos. They're rather strong, according to the rumors, so the royal guards are having a hard time dealing with them. Should I take a small group and get rid of them?"

Whitebeard hummed, closing his eyes. "No," he answered simply. "I haven't seen my old friend in a long time. It would be good to go and visit him."

Marco's eyes sparkled in the light. "Alright, Oyaji. I'll tell everyone else."

 

* * *

 

 

"Rayleigh!" Ace slammed open the door to the 'Rip-Off bar', closely followed by Marco and Luffy (who wanted to meet the Pirate King's first mate). The said man looked up from the newspaper he was reading and grinned.

"Oh! If it isn't Ace!" he laughed, folding the paper and putting it on the counter top. Behind him, Shakky offered a wave as she went around maintaining the bar. "What brings you here?"

Marco grinned, throwing some money on the table. Rayleigh calmly picked it up, rolling his eyes. It wasn't like he asked for the money. They probably wanted a coating, which he would've done for free. "We need a coating done. There are some problems on Fishman Island that Oyaji wants to deal with, yoi."

Rayleigh raised an eyebrow. "I saw your ship. Why is he bringing everyone?"

"I'm pretty sure the main motive was a vacation." Marco answered, the smile never leaving his face.

Rayleigh chuckled. "That sounds like the old man." finally noticing Luffy, who was semi-hiding  behind Marco's legs, the older man raised an eyebrow. "And who's this? Last time I checked, you guys didn't have the patience for a child."

"He's rather cute," Shakky said, grinning as she cleaned a glass.

Luffy puffed out his cheeks, stepping away from Marco's legs. "I'm not cute, bastard."

“Language,” Marco said offhandedly.

Ace picked the child up, ignoring the sound of protest. "This is Luffy. We took him in a few years back. I guess you could say we've gotten use to him. The only annoying part is he's turned into Thatch's apprentice."

Rayleigh hummed. "Is that so?" He chuckled and looked at Luffy's hat, his eyes lingering for a few seconds. Shaking his head, the man stood up. "I suppose I should start if you want to leave soon."

"Thanks again, Rayleigh."

The man gave a dry laugh. "Try not to draw attention to yourselves. It'll cause problems."

 

* * *

 

 

They were walking towards Sabaody Park when they first spotted the Celestial Dragon. Ace snarled, putting a hand over Luffy's mouth and sunk into the shadows.

The Whitebeard Pirates would never bow to them.

Luffy squeaked, but didn't make a sound as he felt Ace's murderous aura. The ten-year-old craned his neck to look at Marco, only to see the blonde just as pissed. Luffy blinked in confusion, wondering what they were so mad about.

It was another few minutes before Luffy's mouth was released and he was allowed to make noise again. He sat on Ace's back, grinning as he reached out to touch one of the bubbles. "Hey, Ace. Why were you so mad earlier?"

"Hmm?" Ace looked up at the boy. "Oh. Because of the Celestial Dragon."

"Celestial Dragon? Like the one that killed…"

“Yeah,” Ace said. “Same people who killed Sabo.”

"They're government dogs who have way too much power and are incredibly weak, yoi." Marco explained, looking at a map. “They take away other people's freedom for their own selfish needs."

"That's bad," Luffy said simply. "But why's everyone bowing to them?"

"'Cause they have a lot of power," Ace answered. "If they don't bow to them, the Celestial Dragons will kill them."

"Oh. I don't like them."

"None of us do, Luffy." Ace's eyes sparkled with malice. "Trust me, no of us do."

 

* * *

 

 

Luffy cried out in joy as he ran around Ace's feet, wanting to explore  _everything._

But honestly, no one blamed him. Sabaody Park was something incredible to behold.

"Marco!" The child cried, tugging on the sleeves of the blonde. "We need to go on the Farris Wheel! The Farris Wheel!"

Rolling his eyes, Marco answered, "Alright, just calm down first, yoi. We've got time to kill; we can go on whatever you want."

Marco was not going to say it gave him joy when the child's eyes literally turned into stars.

 

* * *

 

 

"We haven't stayed in Fishman Island in forever. Usually we’re just passing through to get to the New World. This is the first time we’ll be docking," Haruta said, grinning as the ship sunk below the waves. "I'm exited to see how it's grown."

"There's supposed to be this really good mermaid café that I was to visit," Thatch laughed. "I can't wait to see all of those beautiful mermaids."

“You’ll just scare them off again,” Blamenco said with a laugh.

"Ace!" Luffy suddenly cried out, running towards the railing of the ship. "Look at that fish! It's  _huge_!"

Ace looked over his shoulder, grinning at the child. "It would make good dinner, huh Luffy?"

"Yeah!" The child agreed enthusiastically. "Thatch! Thatch! You've  _got_ to catch it! We can have sea king for dinner tonight."

"Forget it, kid." Thatch laughed. "There is no way in hell I'm getting my hair wet."

"Your hair doesn't matter," Luffy said, crossing his arms and puffing out his cheeks. A habit he does whenever he's mad or upset about something. "You can fix it later."

"If you want it so much,  _you_ can get it."

"I can't swim!" Luffy cried out.

Thatch shrugged. "Then too bad. Guess you'll have to wait for dinner, yeah?"

"Jerk." Luffy said, completely forgetting the whole incident as soon as he saw another sea-king swim by.

 

* * *

 

 

"Luffy," Ace said sternly, making the ten-year-old look him in the eye. "You will not get lost, you hear me? You will stay by my side and not draw attention to yourself."

"Fine," Luffy muttered, hating being called out for getting lost. It wasn't his fault that Ace always seemed to wander off! Or rather, he was the one that wandered off. . .

But that wasn't the point!

Ace was treating him like a baby and he didn't like it. He wasn't a four-year-old anymore! He was ten! Old enough to become a man. He even had a bounty!

"Luffy, I'm serious." Ace said, picking the boy up. "This place is dangerous, especially with those pirates running around. I also heard a rumor about the marines being on the island."

"So?"

" _So?"_ Ace repeated sarcastically. "You've got a bounty, you rubber idiot. Some people might be after you."

"I'll take them all on!" Luffy grinned.

Ace whacked him over the head. "You  _can't,_ moron. That's what I'm trying to tell you!"

"Ace!" Luffy whined, tears forming in the corners of his eyes. "That hurt."

"Deal with it," Ace snapped, cuffing the other over the head once again. "Luffy, we don't want you to get lost, okay? It's not that hard!"

"Okay!" The boy cried out. "I get it! Please stop hitting me! I promise I won't get lost."

 

* * *

 

 

"I'm lost," the ten-year-old boy blinked up at a rather beautiful mermaid, who had found him hopelessly wondering the streets.

The mermaid giggled. "Maybe I can help you find your way back?"

"Really?" Luffy said, his eyes sparkling. "Thanks so much miss mermaid!"

"Call me Camie," Camie said with a small smile. It had been a while since she'd seen a human child—they really were as cute as she remembered. "Now, where are you from?"

"I’m from the _Moby_! A really, really big boat!" he threw his arms out to make his point. "It's got this really cool whale in the front!"

Camie's eyes widened. She'd heard stories of this country's heroes—The Whitebeard Pirates. It was said that they road on a beautiful ship with a white whale figurehead. "The _Moby Dick_?" Camie questioned, not really believing what she was hearing. "You're from the _Moby Dick_?"

"Yep!" Luffy chirped out just as another voice reached her ears.

_"Camie!"_

Turning around on her bubble, the mermaid grinned and threw open her arms, embracing the orange blob that had jumped on her. "Pappug!"

"A talking blob!" the child cried out. "That's so cool!"

"I'm a starfish!" the said orange blob corrected.

"A talking starfish!" Luffy’s eyes turned into stars. "That's still so cool!"

 

* * *

 

 

It was when Luffy got lost for the second time that trouble finally caught up to him. In hindsight, he really should've noticed when the old (kind of terrifying) man started to follow him, but the boy choose to ignore it so he could focus on finding the ship.

He'd lost sight of Camie almost ten minutes ago when she started screaming that she did something wrong with this really weird face. Pappug didn't help the situation at all and started yelling as well, so Luffy left.

He was starting to regret that decision by now.

The boy could ignore all the weird looks that the fishmen gave him (he got weird looks even when he was above ground) but the old man was starting to freak him out, having just noticed the look on that said man's face.

It was scary.

So he ran.

Worst mistake of his life.

The man looked surprised for a second, a flash of hurt appeared on his face, but that was quickly replaced as anger. The man lunged at him, missing him my mere centimeters. Luffy yelped, running even faster. Was this one of those men that Ace was talking about? The one that was after his bounty?

It was then that he noticed the Marine uniform.

"Leave me alone!" Luffy cried out, running as fast as his legs could take him. The man started screaming random gibberish that Luffy didn't even try to understand. "Stop chasing me!"

That is how Luffy's afternoon went—screaming as he ran around town with a scary old man chasing him. The boy was surprised that he hadn't run into any of his brothers or sisters yet and he was silently wishing that he would sometime soon.

 

* * *

 

 

Marco was having a rather enjoyable time shopping with Thatch, for once. He'd gotten much needed new clothes while Thatch went and bought some of the Fishmen Island’s specialties down at the food market.

All in all, they were having a lot of fun.

Well, until they saw the red blob streak past them, screaming out things like, 'leave me alone!' and 'stop!' closely followed by marine hero, Garp the Fist.

"Hey," Thatch said with a little uncertainly. "Wasn't that Luffy?"

"You know what?" Marco said hesitantly. "I'm pretty sure that was."

Both of the men looked at each other before breaking out into a sprint, trying to catch up with their little brother who had somehow gotten into another sticky situation . . .  _again._

 

* * *

 

 

Gasping for air, Luffy desperately clung to Marco's arm as they faced the creepy old man that had been chasing Luffy for at least an hour. Silently, the boy thanked that awful training that Izo always put him through. That was probably the only reason that he hadn't passed out by now.

_That geezer was fast!_

"Now, what do we have here?" Marco said, his lazy eyes narrowing slightly. "I thought a marine hero knew better than to pick on kids."

"Shut your mouth, Phoenix. You know what he's capable of. The brat is dangerous." Garp snapped, as he massaged his temples. "But that's not the reason I'm here."

"Oh?" Thatch said in the same emotionless voice as Marco. "Then what's a big shot doing here then? Going after Oyaji's head?"

"No," Grap snarled, removing his hand from his face and  _glaring_ at both commanders. It was quite a surprise; after all, Garp wasn't really a man that was known to be serious. Most of the time he'd go and hit Ace (something that Thatch  _loved_ to tease the fire-user about) and then just linger around the deck.

Of course, the man hadn't ever seen Luffy. They either kept the boy below deck, or as far away as they could. They didn't want anyone knowing about the boy if they could help it.

Well, that was only a bittersweet memory at this point.

"I thought that I'd come and take  _my grandson_ back," the man finished, looking straight into Marco's eyes with a fierce determination. "You will not be stopping me, Phoenix."

"Ace?" Thatch snorted. "Look, we all know that you’re crazy, but there is no way in  _hell_ that he'd  _ever_ go back."

"He's not talking about Ace, Thatch." Marco said seriously, his grip unconsciously hugging the ten-year-old closer in his arms.

"What—?"

"Monkey D. Luffy." Grap said. "Now if you please, give me back my grandson."

Marco could feel Luffy shift in his arms, clearly confused about the whole situation. For now, the blonde ignored the child, focusing on the older man. "No."

Garp's face twisted, his eyes holding malice to anyone who got in the way. "You have no right to keep him here! He's  _my grandson!"_

"And he's our brother, too!" Marco snapped, blue flames flickering to life. "You might be related by blood, but that doesn't mean anything when you abandon a child on a fucking island!"

“Oh for the love of—" Garp swore, his fist clenching. "I DIDN'T LEAVE HIM ANYWHERE! If I knew he was  _alive_ then he wouldn't be in this damn situation! He wouldn't have a bounty and he wouldn't be having to deal with  _you!"_

Luffy whimpered, not liking all the yelling. Marco brushed a hand through the boy's hair as he quietly passed Luffy over to Thatch. "Then what happened?"

"Let me talk to your captain."

"I'm not letting you get near Oyaji until you calm down and tell us first." Marco said, crossing his arms.

Garp snarled, but both commanders could tell that he was losing the burning anger. The older man closed his eyes as if he was remembering a painful memory.

"There was a storm," he started. "I was getting Luffy away form that damn son of mine—to grow up somewhere peacefully and become a marine when he was older."

"You were taking him away from his dad?" Thatch raised an eyebrow. "Why would you do that? Who's his dad anyway?"

"Monkey D. Dragon." Marco said before Garp could snap again. "Right?"

"Yes," Garp said, ignoring the surprised look of the 4th division commander. "Anyways, we were in the middle of the sea when the storm hit. Out ship was capsized—Luffy had already eaten a devil fruit by then—accident, of course. We all thought he drowned." The man shook his head. "I still have no clue how he survived."

"So you just left?" Thatch inquired, some anger rising. "You just abandoned him because you thought he drowned? Why didn't you check the surrounding islands?!"

"Because then nearest one was at least a mile away!" Grap snarled. "Ever if he managed to wash up on shore, being in the water that long would've killed him by itself! The water would've weakened him so much that his body would've stopped working! There was no way he'd be alive!"

"But he is," Marco said, eyes flashing. "And now he's part of our family, not yours."

"You don't have any right to keep him here," Garp growled. "I want to talk to your captain."

Marco just shrugged. "Talk to him all you want. Every person will just say the same thing. Luffy is  _our_ family now."

 

* * *

 

 

Marco played with his glass at the local fishman bar, lost in thought. Ace was to his left, supporting several bruises from his grandfather's 'fist of love' while Luffy was sitting in the man's lap, happily eating some meat.

Today had been a long day for all of them.

Garp had left almost an hour ago after a full-blown yelling match took place the rest of the afternoon. Whitebeard had to physically remove him from the ship so it wouldn't turn out into an all-out war.

As soon as Luffy had gotten back to the ship, the ten-year-old boy had immediately rushed below deck and hidden himself, trying to block out on the yelling. Everyone on the ship could tell he was upset with the whole situation, so they didn't bother him.

When Luffy had finally come out, Marco and Ace had brought him to a local bar so he could eat without everyone looking at him strangely. They'd learned his parentage and no matter how hard the crewmates tried, they could help but think that the kid had one wild bloodline. Even if he had a monster for a dad and an asshole for a grandfather, he was still  _Luffy._

He was still their little brother. He was still their family.

_Monkey D. Luffy, huh?_ Marco didn't really know how to react to that. One D was enough for the whole ship, but another one? It was a new experience for everyone. Though, Marco had to say that he wasn't as surprised as he should've been. It explained a lot about Luffy and his sheer determination.

"Luffy, that's mine!" Ace snapped, snatching a piece of meat from the ten-year-old's hands. Luffy whined and pouted at him, but Ace glared at the boy. "You have your own! Stop stealing mine!"

It certainly explained his long-questioned appetite.

 

* * *

 

 

“What does D stand for anyways?” Jozu asked, leaning against his seat. The seats used for commanders’ meetings were always uncomfortable and this time it wasn’t any different. All sixteen of them—plus Whitebeard, of course—crowded around a small table to discuss the happenings of the ship.

“Dick,” said Ace, who had been leaning against the wall when Jozu spoke. The other commanders all snorted. Even Namur cracked a grin.

Whitebeard leaned back in his chair as he watched his commanders interact. It brought a smile to his face, being able to live out his dream every day. His family was strong. They all carried their own dreams, their own will.

 It reminded him of _that_ time. The words Roger spoke to him. “The Will of D, huh…?”

He realized that it had gone silent. All his commanders were staring at him with looks of confusion. Except for Marco, that is. Marco had been with him when Roger spun his tale.

“Oyaji?” Blenheim questioned. “You know about this D stuff?”

“I do,” Whitebeard rumbled and laughed.

“It’s a long story, yoi…” Marco sighed and shook his head, ignoring the surprised looks thrown his way.

“You want to know, my sons?” Whitebeard said, eyes narrowed.

A resounding _yes_ was heard from the group.

Whitebeard laughed. “Alright! I’ll tell you. It has been passed down by ancient times…. And in the future—someday—someone will appear and carry the history of all those centuries on his back… and challenge this whole world to a fight!”

The commanders look confused. Fossa lit a cigar, tilting his head in interest. “What do you mean, Oyaji?”

“It all started 800 years ago, when a certain organization called the World Government came to be…”


	10. Chapter 10

"Luffy!" Ace smacked the eleven-year-old's feet, trying to wake the boy up. Luffy, of course, just rolled over and muttered gibberish about meat and other types of food that made Ace's stomach growl. "Come on, brat. Up! Get up!"

"It’s too early," Luffy muttered, burring his face into a pillow. His body let out an involuntary shiver as he pulled the blanket tighter around his body. "'M cold."

"We go over this every time it gets cold, Luffy." Ace placed his hands on his hips with a sigh. " _Honestly._ If you can get up, you'll get your warm clothes on, yeah? I'm pretty sure that Thatch is making something in the kitchen to warm everyone up. You'll miss breakfast if you just stay in here."

"Mmm," Luffy poked his head out from the pillow. "What kind of breakfast?"

"Warm breakfast." Ace answered with a grin. "Then you can go play out in the snow. Oyaji's going up against the whole crew in a snowball war. He might be the strongest man in the world, but he's not a very good snowball fighter."

"It snowed?" Luffy sat up and stretched his arms over his head. He quickly realized it was colder than he first thought and pulled the blanket over his shoulders, walking to his closet and pulling out the warmest things he could find.

"Huh?" Ace blinked. "Oh, yeah. It snowed last night. Thatch is having a hay-day."

It was a well-known fact that Luffy and Thatch were complete opposites when it came to snow. Though, both of them loved to play in it, Luffy preferred nice, warm days compared to the freezing temperatures. Ace thought it was because rubber became brittle when it was cold, so Luffy was much more susceptible to attacks.

Thatch, on the other hand,  _loved_ snow. No one really knew why, but whenever it would snow, Thatch would practically skip across the deck the whole day, taking part in every snow-related activity out there. Ace was indifferent about the whole matter since the snow didn't bother him at all.

"Good for him," Luffy said, putting on his jacket. "When're we going to go back to the summer islands?"

"A few weeks," Ace shrugged. "I don't know; I'm not a navigator. Though, everyone is saying that we should land on the next island in about two or three more hours. You coming to town?"

"Yep," the boy chirped. "Thatch said that this was one of his favorite islands."

"Cause it has the best snow," Ace snorted. "But it's true. The snow there is like fluffy powder. It's fun to jump in. Last time we visited, Thatch brought a few crates on land and made a platform where we could jump in the snow. It was fun."

Luffy hummed an acknowledgment, his stomach suddenly let loose a large rumble. "I’m hungry."

Ace laughed. "Then let's go, yeah? We don't want Blamenco eating all the food."

Luffy rolled his eyes and grinned. "He eats too much."

"I don't want to hear that coming from  _you."_

 

* * *

 

 

"So," Thatch clapped his hands together, drawing everyone's attention to himself. "Who's going to the island with me? I have this really fun plan!"

Ace calmly put his fork down and snorted. "I was going to go, but now you’re making me hesitate."

"That's rude," Thatch shot his friend a playful glare. "But seriously, who's coming? I don't want to go alone! It's no fun!"

"I'll go," Haruta said with a grin, glancing to the left, where Vista was ignoring everyone in order to focus on his meal. "Vista's coming with, though."

The swordsman raised his head when he heard his name being called, a look of understanding coming across his face when his brain finally registered what was being said.

" _Oi—"_ Vista tried to protest, but was cut off by a smug grin from Haruta and the 'puppy-dog-eyes' of doom from Thatch. Eventually, he relented with a sigh. "Fine, I'll come."

"Of course." Thatch's grin seemed to match Haruta's. Eventually, he turned his attention to the eleven-year-old-boy who was inhaling food at a seemingly impossible rate. "What about you, Luffy? Coming?"

"Yep!" He managed to choke out as he continued eating. "Ace's coming too."

"I said maybe." Ace argued.

"And I said your coming." Thatch laughed, slapping the fire-user on the back. "That's everyone, right?"

"What about Marco?" Luffy asked, letting out a small yawn when he stopped eating for the moment. "Marco might want to come."

"Marco might want to  _babysit."_ Thatch corrected. "He's a stick in the mud when it comes to fun. Phoenixes just don't seem to understand the joy of snow."

"Don't make up lies, yoi." Marco said, startling everyone at the table. He approached the group, his own food in hand.

"It's true though," Thatch muttered, yelping when the blonde stuffed his face into his breakfast. He let out a sound of protest, lifting his face back up and whipped all of the grease off. "Marco!"

"I'll be going as well," Marco informed them with a small, smug smile. "The bigger the group, the better, yoi."

"Fine," Thatch said as he stood up, dusting his pants off. "We'll just have to teach you how to have fun,  _pineapple."_

 

* * *

 

 

Luffy giggled as he ran around in the snow, the Ace, Marco and Thatch watching from the side as Haruta and Vista had a miniature snow-ball fight with the boy. It felt good to just let loose like this every once in a while.

They had traveled right outside the town, away from any civilians who might recognize them. The commanders had decided just to enjoy the snow a bit before they went shopping in the town.

Thatch and Ace had played with the boy in the beginning, but then opted for a quite spot to watch. Marco hadn't even taken part in the activities, only watching his brothers from the sidelines.

"Thatch," Ace said suddenly, watching as Thatch kept looking at the sky with this blissful smile. Several snowflakes landed on his face, but he didn't seem to take notice. "What're you thinking about?"

Thatch hummed, closing his eyes and flopping back into the soft, pillow-like snow. The smile never left his face as he answered, "When I die, I hope it's snowing."

Ace snorted, a softer version of his trademark grin taking its place on his face. "Why snow?"

"It's soft?" Thatch guessed with a laugh, opening his eyes but they didn't leave the sky. "I dunno. I've just always liked snow. It's calming, you know? I grew up on a winter island, y’know? When I was alone, it was the one thing that made me happy. Its comforting to think about; it brings back good memories."

"I guess if I'm ever going to die, I'd be with someone I loved." Ace said with a shrug. "But I don't plan on dying soon, so . . . "

Thatch let out a breathy laugh. "It's the Grand Line, Ace.”

"Yeah, I know. I'm not worried about dying, it's just . . ."

"Leaving behind the people you love most." Marco said with a nod. "We all feel the same way. Just don't go dying on us soon, yoi. You too, Thatch. We need our commanders."

“Of course! How could I leave my little brothers all alone?”

“I’m older, yoi…”

 

* * *

 

 

"Hey," Luffy said, blinking as small snowflakes fluttered on his eyelashes. "Is the town supposed to be this empty?"

All the commanders frowned at the sentence, watching as a door swung open in the brisk, winter wind and shut again. It was rather creepy, but they decided to ignore it for now. There was almost no one out, and the people that they _did_ see always flinched when they passed, glancing at them and then shutting their windows.

"No . . ." Thatch muttered, mostly to himself but everyone heard it. "Last time we were here, everyone was out and playing in the snow. Everything was decorated in a lights and it was always in a festive mood. It's like something really bad happened . . ."

"Probably did." Ace answered curtly, his eyes scanning the houses as they walked down the snowy road. "It's like a plague swept through the town. But that wouldn't explain why the locals seem to be afraid of us. Last time, they threw a party to welcome us."

"Pirate attack?" Vista ventured, pulling the scarf over his face so he wouldn't get windburn.

Haruta eyed the houses suspiciously, her blue eyes narrowing when a mother spotted them, yelped and ushered her child inside, slamming the door behind her. "I doubt it. There's no damage to the houses or anything. It's like this town is haunted or something."

Thatch let out an annoyed whine, crossing his arms over his chest and pouting. "Well, there goes our vacation. How about we hit the next island? I heard that it was a winter one also."

Luffy was about to agree when something caught his attention from the corner of his eye. The boy turned around, his eyes widening to what he saw. He turned back towards the commanders; taking Ace's hand and yanking the limb, trying to desperately get his attention.

"Luffy!" Ace yelped, stumbling when the child pulled harder than he meant to. "What're you . . . " He trailed off when he saw what the child was pointing at. Flames flared to life on his shoulders for a second before they flickered out.

"Fuck." he whispered before he raised his voice a little to notify the others. "Thatch. I think I know why there are many people out."

"Wha—?" Thatch said, looking at the spot where Ace was pointing.

A scream told him otherwise.

The first thing he noticed was the child, no older than Luffy, struggling in a net with a few guys laughing above him. The boy was beaten up, obviously putting up a fight. He was screaming at the men, though the commanders couldn't understand his words.

And everyone's blood ran as cold as the ice on the windows, two words somehow making it out of someone's mouth. "Slave traders."

 

* * *

 

 

They found the auction house not too far away from the ship, standing out in all of it's horrible glory. It was lit up like a Christmas house, full of lights and colors. A few people were laughing just outside of it, drinking sake and acting like they were having the best time of their lives.

It made Ace sick.

After they had freed the boy and injured (read: killed) the slave traders (they verified it, of course. They wouldn't want to go around killing random civilians.), Luffy had become clingier than usual. He had clung to Ace like a lifeline and eventually stopped walking entirely, so Ace had to pick the boy up and put him on his shoulders. Thankfully he was still small but man… he was starting to get too heavy to carry anymore.

Luffy hadn't been too happy about going to the auction house either, as Ace quickly found out. Whenever they took a step closer to the giant building, Luffy's grip on Ace's hair tightened until Ace had to slap the boy’s hands and tell him to loosen up.

As they reached the door, the drunkards grinned at them, their yellow teeth made Ace want to cringe. Apparently, the drunkards thought that the group was apart of the slave-trading businesses and welcomed them with open arms.

They hated all of it.

But the Whitebeard Pirates had decided to go with it for now, hopeful that they would be able to get some information out of the men. Of course, they didn't plan to stay long as they really couldn't stand these types of people.

"So," one of them said suddenly, throwing a sake cup into the snow. "What’re you sellin’? The child?”

Ace had to close his eyes and count to ten in order to keep control over the fire that raged within him. Normally, he was good with his control level, but on occasions (much like this one) his control would explode and it  _was not_ pretty.

"No," Vista said in a low snarl. "He is  _not_ for sale."

The men laughed, apparently taking it as a joke. "If ye change your mind, let us know, kay? We'd find you the right price."

"No," Marco said, voice cold and very much unlike the bored ton that he usually used. "Luffy's not going anywhere."

"Che. Just a suggestion." The man wheezed, leaning over on the side of the action house. "If ya want to buy in the auction, yeh better get inside. They're gonna open soon."

" _Sure_." Marco got out, his voice low in an attempt to calm himself down. When Ace didn't move, Marco grabbed his shoulder and pulled both him and Luffy into the action house, his frown fading a little as Ace flipped off the men at the entrance.

"They're all morons, ignore them." Marco said as they took the seats in the back row, away from any prying eyes. Haruta had her arms crossed over her chest, glaring at the couple in front of them who were discussing the best type of slave to buy. Vista was in the same position, while Ace had set Luffy on his lap, pulling the boy into a hug.

“I don’t like this…” Luffy said quietly.

It probably would've been a good idea to drop the boy back at the ship before they came and then confronted the issue, but it was too late to go back now. For the time being, Luffy just had to deal with it and try not to give them away too early.

Ace had taken it upon himself to comfort the boy as soon as the auctioneer came and blasted random gibberish into the speaker. As soon as he heard noise, Luffy buried his head into Ace's chest.

"Shh." Ace had whispered low enough for no one else to hear. "Luffy, you're okay. No one is going to hurt you, all right? We'll protect you. We always have."

Ace knew of Luffy's fear of slavery. He didn't know how it devolved, but he supposed it had to do with the Celestial Dragons. It was probably one of those times where one of the slaves had escaped in Sabaody and the bastards had to 'deal' with them.

Luffy's fear wasn't exactly over the slavery itself, more of the loss of freedom. Freedom had always been a thing that Luffy needed, as the crew found out rather quickly. If Luffy didn't have the freedom that he needed, he would often get really agitated, twitchy or possibly start to freak out and cause messes.

"Luffy," Ace said, trying to get the boy attention. "Just breathe, alright? Calm down." Ace then proceeded to keep soothing the boy by telling him stories of his earliest adventures. He told the boy about Sabo a lot, even if he really didn't want to talk about it.

Sabo was someone that Luffy looked up too, even if the boy had never met him. Every story that Ace told about his old friend always had Sabo as the main protagonist. Ace would sometimes put himself in the stories, depending on if he was planning a true story or not, but Luffy always like to hear about Sabo the most.

Sometimes Ace wished that Luffy had met him. Sabo would’ve really liked the brat.

Before either of them knew it, the auction was over and Marco was nudging him, his blue eyes blazing with a fierce determination. "Time to go, yoi. We've got an auction to crash."

 

* * *

 

 

About an hour later, all six of them came back covered in scratches and bruises but looking overly happy with themselves. The crew came to welcome them back up on deck, laughing and demanding to know what happened.

"We ran into some slave traders," Vista explained with an eye roll. "Then we blew up the auction house and freed all the salves. The town's people were pretty happy 'bout that."

Cheers came from the crew, some even bringing out some sake and food. Whenever they did something like this, the Whitebeard pirates had devolved a tradition of throwing a party to celebrate the freedom of the slaves. Hell, some of the former slaves even joined the party from time to time and eventually joined Whitebeard.

Luffy was bouncing around the deck, talking to everyone and enjoying himself like he always did. It was like the Action House incident didn't even register in his mind anymore. Most of the crew wasn't surprised by his behavior, as if happened often, but several new crewmembers were quite miffed to see a child on deck, acting like he had been with this family for years.

The commanders just sat back and laughed.

 

* * *

 

 

"Some hell of a birthday, huh, Haruta?" Thatch whispered to the swordswoman, grinning when she flushed and shot him an angry look.

"Shut up! That's supposed to be a secret!"

Thatch just clicked his tongue together. " _Tsk._ You should know better than to try and hide secrets from the wondrous Thatch! I know  _everything_ that happens on this ship."

"You mean Luffy knows everything and tells you, right?" Haruta said with a grin. She laughed when Thatch's smile dropped and his expression was changed into mock-horror.

"You wound me, Haruta." He said, making sure that his façade wouldn't break. "You wound me very much."

The woman laughed. "Just saying that your big mouth is going to get you killed, Thatchy."

"Commander Haruta is right, Commander Thatch," A deep voice said, startling both commanders. They spun on their heels and faced Teach, a man that they had both come to respect over the years. "That mouth could get ya killed sooner rather than later."

“Jesus, Teach, don’t sneak up on us like that…”

"Oi," Thatch laughed, taking his words jokingly. "Stop killing me off. I'm not going to die so easily."

"Oh, I know Commander Thatch." Teach said with a wicked grin. "Oh, trust me,  _I know_."


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im just gonna spam post the rest of the chapters here before i forget again lmmmfaao
> 
> this story is super old and while it was edited heavily, there are still a LOT of OOC moments. i literally wrote the majority of this in 2013. its old. 
> 
> anyways some Cool Writing Things coming up in my world:  
> I'm in the process of completely redoing my avengers x op fic, sanity. like. i shoveled the old one & it has a cool new plot with cool new things and the characters aren't a mess. like in this fic. and the old version of sanity. its going to be SUPER LONG. around 20 chapters. right now I'm not even halfway done with chapter one and it's already at 5,000 words. so that'll be fun. 
> 
> im going to be putting the new version of Confusion Ensured on this account too just to say i have it on here. @ ao3 y dont u let me queue chapters.

_"ATTACK!"_  The cry rang across the ship, startling several crewmembers below the deck. Luffy, who was about to start drawing on Ace's face while the fire-user was sleeping, was thrown off the body as Ace jerked awake, his eyes wide and slightly dangerous.

Two other crew members came racing below deck yelling, "Marines! Marines are here!" At the top of their lungs, running throughout the corridors.

Izo peeked his head out from his quarter with a nasty frown on his half-makeup covered face. " _Now?_  I haven't finished putting my makeup on!"

Luffy just laughed, jumping up to his feet and clinging to Ace's leg as the fire-user sent the boy a disapproving glare. "I don't think they'll notice over all the marine blood that'll be splattered on your face."

Izo turned his sharp glare to the boy. "Luffy that is the most demented thing that I've ever heard you say."

Luffy beamed up at the man innocently.

"Alright," Ace said, shaking his leg slightly, hitting Luffy with his knee. "Off my leg, brat. You fighting this time?"

"Mmm," Luffy uncurled his arms from the fire-user's leg, dusting himself off and offering a determined grin. "Yup! I haven't been sparing much so I need to train somehow."

Ace rolled his eyes, ruffling the boy's hair as he walked to the entrance, barley flinching when a loud bang echoed throughout the ship causing it to jerk violently to the side. "You know; most kids your age wouldn't even be thinking about fighting. What about school and homework? Maybe we should get you lessons or something . . . "

"Like hell," Luffy said, crossing his arms over his chest and pouting as he raced behind his older brother. "School 'n stuff is  _really_  boring. I ain't doing something like that."

"Oh, you poor baby," Ace teased, slamming open he hatch of the door, letting all the sounds of the battle filter through the halls. Ace barley blinked as he dodged a spear that lodged itself into the wooden door frame, only inches from his head. He glanced at the boy that he'd watched grow up since four, now the tender age of twelve, ready for yet another routine battle.

Part of the fire-user felt bad about picking the child up on that island; after all, he was forced into the line of piracy. It wasn't by choice. Though, given who his father was, the marine life wouldn't have been a great option either. He'd most likely died years ago, thanks to Garp's big mouth and terrible parenting skills.

It was amazing how much the boy had grown though, learning Haki at such a young age (his King's Haki was incredible), having a bounty of 100 million (it went up after yet another marine base incident) and just dealing with life. Ace honestly could wait to see how much more the boy would grow, though there would always be that nagging voice in the back of his head that practically screamed, ' _what if?'_

What if they'd never found him? What if Garp had made him a marine? What if he was the captain of his own pirate crew, sailing the Grand Line in search of the world-renowned treasure,  _One Piece?_ Ace didn't want to think about it.

_But still_ , he thought as he watched Luffy join the fray, fists flying in all directions. Those were only that:  _what ifs_. He was here now; a Whitebeard Pirate, and they could all say that he wasn't leaving any time soon.

* * *

 

"Oh?" A rather large marine sneered down at Luffy, obviously underestimating the boy with just a glance. "What do we have here? A brat on a battle field? How unexpected. Better take care of you before my superior's have to dirty their hands with a pirate brat."

"I'll kick your ass first," Luffy growled at him, raising his fists in an aggressive gesture.

He hated marines (or people in general) like this—completely ignoring him because he was young. He was a  _pirate,_ damn it! He should be recognized and  _certainty_  not underestimated because of his age!

"Che," The marine swung his large sword at him, making a sound of surprise when Luffy dodged it with practiced ease. He tried once again, only for Luffy to catch the flat end of the sword with his hands, snapping the weapon in two. The marine gapped at him, only to be thrown in the water with a well-aimed  _pistol_ to the face.

Luffy then took the time to weave between the enemy, scoping out for anyone more powerful or possibly deadly to the crew. So far, it was just a few battle ships that thought that they could take on his family.

Suddenly, something hit his back, throwing him across the deck as he let out a strangled cry. The boy hit the railing with a dull thud, gasping for air and trying to figure out watch exactly just happened and why he didn't sense it before . . .

Haki was obviously involved, judging by the pain that was flaring in his lower back. He closed his eyes, trying to catch his breath when he felt himself going weightless again, being picked up by the back of his shirt.

He cracked open his eyes, flinching when a cannon went off right next to him, causing ringing to echo throughout his ears painfully. Went the ringing stopped, he could focus on his attacker.

Big, even larger than the last man that he fought just a few minutes ago with yellow teeth and red eyes that seemed to glow in the night and he had on this wicked smile—like he was imagining every what to torture Luffy until he cracked.

Too bad the boy wouldn't crack easily.

"Hmmm?" the marine said, his breath wafting over Luffy as the boy tried not to make gagging noises. "What's a little brat like you doin' on a ship like this? Wonder if Whitebeard kidnaped yah, huh? Hmf. Pirates really are scum."

"Let me go!" Luffy growled, kicking the man's face with a Haki-infused foot. The marine howled, dropping the boy immediately and gripping his now broken nose. Luffy simply tensed up, trying to desperately ignore the pain in his back, instead switching in a defense position. "I wasn't kidnapped and Oyaji isn't scum!"

The marine bared his teeth at the boy, much like a wild dog would. "I was tryin' ta save your sorry ass, boy. If ya were kidnapped, ya wouldn't have to face the justice of the navy. After all, we could use some strong fighters like you."

"No! _"_ , Luffy said, raising his fist as it covered itself in the shiny black armor. "I'm not going to be a marine. Marines are the assholes; not pirates _, idiot_."

"Brainwashed," the marine snorted, coating his own fist in Haki. "To late ta save a mind like that one. Corrupted, that's what you are."

Luffy charged the marine. They exchanged a few blows, neither really doing any damage to the other until Luffy got a nice shot right in the stomach. Not a second later, the marine twisted his body and managed to land a nasty hit right on Luffy's shoulder.

Luffy winced, knowing full well that that would be a rather large bruise later, but for right now he focused on his fight; watching warily as the huge marine pushed himself out of the rubble.

This was a big fight; it was taking longer than most fights were and theses guys were pretty tough. Briefly, Luffy wondered how pissed the shipwrights would be when they saw the after-effects, but quickly pushed the thought out of his mind when the marine lunged at him yet again, only to be intercepted by sword in the neck, causing the man to fall to the ground, obviously dead.

Thatch stood over the body, rolling his eyes as it fell. Luffy smiled at him, clutching his shoulder that seemed to burn more than his back at the moment. Thatch seemed to notice his pain as well and slowly walked over. "Hey, Lu. You okay?"

"Fine," Luffy replied, trying to catch his breath once again. "Just my shoulder. I'm good."

Thatch gave him a disbelieving grunt. "Yeah, sure. We're almost done, most marines are fleeing." He noticed Luffy wince as he rubbed his injured shoulder. "You sure you're okay?"

"Hungry," Luffy groaned, though he was smiling. Like Thatch said, most of the marines were fleeing back to their ships and the sound of cannons was slowly fading away as the last men left.

Bodies lingered around the deck, along with blood. He saw a few of his brothers among the body count and his gut twist painfully. Those were his  _family_ …

_Why are you doing this?_ Luffy wanted to scream at the marines, but he didn't. Only watching as their ship sailed away, leaving their dead comrades behind.  _Why are you risking people's lives for sure a pointless cause? How many families had lost someone because of this stupid war?_

* * *

 

"Kingdew!" Luffy cried out, laughing as he chased around a beetle that he'd found on the latest island. "Kingdew! Help me catch that bug! It's Heracules!"

"Do it yourself, Lu." came the amused reply as Kingdew trailed a bit behind the boy who seemed to be everywhere at once. Honestly, Kingdew didn't know how the boy got his energy. How did he always seem to be this big ball of sunshine that everyone adored? It was amazing how one child changed a whole crew.

Kingdew wasn't a child-friendly person by any means, but Luffy was different. He was one of the few there when they picked him up seven years ago and watched him grow into a fine pirate. It was satisfying, knowing he had a hand in raising the boy.

"Stingy!" Luffy said. "I'm gonna catch it by myself."

"Don't get eaten."

"It's just a bug!" His little brother whined, jumping around the air as the bug flew just out of his reach. "It's not going to eat me.

Kingdew just raised an eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure that's what you said with the crocodile."

"But that's a  _crocodile,"_ Luffy stressed out, grinning at his older brother and much, much larger brother. "Besides, I was just a little kid back then."

"That was two weeks ago, Luffy."

"See?" the boy grinned his typical grin. "I was just a kid."

"Just don't get eaten," Kingdew repeated.

* * *

 

" _Hungry_ ," Luffy moaned, flopping out in the sand of the latest island and looking up at Thatch with big, wide eyes. "Thatch! Feed me!"

The man just rolled his eyes with a small grin, picking at his fingernails carelessly. "Get some fish, you're near an ocean."

Luffy pouted, sticking his bottom lip out. "Please? I don't know how to cook!"

"So?" Thatch seemed unaffected by the dubbed 'puppy dog eyes of doom'. "Get Ace to help."

"Ace is an asshole."

Thatch just laughed with this exasperated smile on his lips. "Fine, I'll get you something. Just try not to eat anything on the beach, yeah? No matter how good it looks, it's not going to taste great. Or be that healthy for you."

Thatch watched as Luffy stuffed something in his mouth before promptly spitting it back out. "Bleh!"

Thatch simply sighed, "You know what? Never mind…"

* * *

 

_Poke._  "Luffy."  _Poke._  "Luffy, stop."  _Poke._  "MONKEY D. LUFFY!"

Luffy let out a burst of laughter that he had been desperately trying to hold in. Jozu rubbed his cheek and muttering things about immature little kids and how much they annoy him at times.

Luffy placed his head on his lap, offering a cheeky grin as a tick mark formed over his left eyebrow. "What'cha doing, Jozu?"

"Thinking about adult stuff," he said. "That is, until you came along. Honestly, don't you have anyone else to bother?"

Luffy hummed for a second, biting the inside of his cheek before he burst out in a wide grin. "Nope! They're all doin' stuff so I'd bother them."

"Annd," Jozu raised an eyebrow, unable to understand what he was hearing. "What about me? Don't you think you're bothering me a bit?"

" _No_." He puffed out his cute little cheeks. "Cause you're not doing anything."

"Come here, you brat," even if Jozu tried to deny it, it was true. He'd already finished all his paperwork. "You're lucky that you're my little brother."


	12. Chapter 12

"Come on, Ace!" The now thirteen-year-old boy said, grabbing Ace's hand and heading for the railing before the ship had even docked. The fire-user, still half asleep after being roughly shaken awake only moments before, mumbled something about islands and food, swaying for a second before falling face-first onto the deck, snoring loudly.

Luffy turned around, his black hair flying in his face and he rolled his eyes and grinned. "Silly Ace!"

He let out a small laugh, ignoring the shaking of the ship as it anchored on the beach of the island that they had landed at just a few minutes ago.

Ace had promised the boy that they'd go exploring as soon they landed, but Luffy was being rather impatient and Ace _had_ to have a narcoleptic attack and made Luffy wait for a few minutes, much to the boy's annoyance.

Tired of waiting, Luffy decided to do something productive instead. He ran back down to his room and pushed open the door, ignoring the creeping creaking sound it made as Luffy switched on the lights. He grinned mischievously, sneaking over to his desk drawer and pulling out a marker. A permanent marker, to be exact.

It didn't take him long to stumble back onto deck, stalking towards Ace that was still blissfully unaware of the small, annoying predator that was about to do something that he'd later regret.

Straddling his chest, the thirteen-year-old leaned forward, uncapping the marker and started his small doodles. At first, he played connect the freckles but soon ran out of freckles to connect so he started to draw his straw hat and swirly patters on his cheeks. Luffy thickened his eyebrows and decided that it'd be a great idea to give the man a beard.

"There!" He announced proudly, not aware of the snickers from the other crew members behind him. He giggled as Ace groaned underneath him, climbing off the man and dashing to hide behind Fossa, who was watching the whole scene with an amused smile, as were many other commanders.

Luffy grabbed his leg and looked up at the man with innocent eyes, laughing when Fossa said, "Hiding behind me is not going to do much."

"I know," Luffy replied with his usual smile. "But it's better than being on top of him."

"He's going to _kill_ you." Fossa said calmly, his eyes sparkling with amusement. "Disembowel you limb for limb."

Luffy just laughed and watched as Ace sat up, muttering incoherent words and yawned. Several crewmembers laughed at his obliviousness, successfully gaining Ace's attention. "What'd they do? Where's Luffy?"

"Nice mustache, Ace! You really look like Oyaji!" a crewmember yelled. Even Oyaji chuckled at that one as Ace groaned in frustration.

"Luffy! Get your ass over here _now!"_ he didn't even have to look in a mirror to know what happened. After all, Luffy did this at least once a week, always ending in Luffy getting beaten.

"Make me!" came the reply as Luffy darted out from behind Fossa and streaked across the deck as a pink and red blur.

Ace snarled, getting to his feet and darting after the boy.

* * *

 

"Curiel, let me go!" Luffy's voice was muffled by the hand in his face as another gripped his shirt so he wouldn't dart off and get lost in the town that they had just landed in. Ace spent the whole morning trying to get the marker off of his face and locked Luffy in his room so the boy wouldn't be able to explore yet. Curiel had taken pity on him and let him out to go explore.

"I need a leash for you," Curiel muttered with an eye roll. Jiru simply chuckled in agreement while Luffy made a frustrated noise at being made fun of.

"I'm thirteen, I can take care of myself!" Luffy huffed.

Curiel patted the boy's head. "You'll get lost."

"Will not!" Luffy protested.

Jiru gave a short, barking laugh and playfully flicked the teen's forehead. "Sorry buddy, you you've got an awful directional sense."

"Shut up." The thirteen-year-old stopped struggling, now pouting. He gave a weak tug, but then stilled completely, dragging his feat behind him. " _Stingy_."

* * *

Luffy was not lost; he was simply exploring without the commanders watching him. That was _not_ being lost.

Though, to be fair, Luffy had gotten bored of all the people conversing with Curiel and later Ace and Thatch who had joined them (for some reason, he was labeled as their _child_ , no matter how much the two denied it) and decided that it would be more fun to explore on his own.

From what Luffy had seen, it was just another boring town with no entertainment or marines to fight. So far, Luffy hadn't even seen a marine base, which could be good and bad. Luffy would bet that his nakama would rather hang around an island with _no_ marine base, but that made the adventure less fun.

He kicked a rock in front of him, an annoyed whine escaping his mouth. Why wasn't there anything to do? His hair flopped in front of his eyes, obscuring his vision as he slowly walked down the dirt road.

He closed his eyes for a second, letting his Haki reach to the corners of this island and enjoying the tranquil feeling. There was a forest to his left, he could practically feet all the soft pitter-pater of the animal's paws as they went along their daily routine. The forest sounded like it was singing, teeming with life. It made him smile.

It never occurred to him that other people might be in the street until he crashed into one.

The boy let out an undignified squeak, scrambling off the man as fast as he could. Almost unconsciously, he dusted his pants, offering his hand to the man that he'd downed with a small, apologetic smile on his face. "Ah, sorry ossan! I didn't see you there."

The man was old; probably around the age of fifty with a white beard that went down to his chest. He hadn't even moved from his position on the ground, just shaking his head as if he were a daze. He didn't even glace in Luffy's direction, causing the thirteen year old to frown, retracting his hand and crouching down next to the man.

"Hey," he said, blinking as the man still didn't respond. "Are you okay? I didn't mean to hit you. I just wasn't looking where I was going and . . . "

The man as he pushed himself into a sitting position, eyes dull and cloudy. "You're still young, huh?" he finally spoke, his words rough as if he never used them. "Do me a favor, boy."

"Huh?" came Luffy's intelligent answer as he bent down.

The man looked up from the ground, his unseeing blue eyes staring into Luffy's very soul. The boy met his unwavering gaze with one of steel and determination. "You have spirit. I can feel it. Reminds me of someone I met a long time ago…"

"Eh?"

"I sailed the seas long ago… back when she was different. Too many people have crossed her and left her with scars… So much blood… So many bodies…Too many have used her waters…. But they don't _listen…"_

"What are you talking about, ossan?" Luffy tilted his head to the side, confused.

"You can hear her, can't you?" The old man laughed.

"Who?"

"The sea, boy!" The old man insisted. "Listen to her, she calls to you! I can feel it! You're just like _that_ man!"

"I don't—"

"— _Luffy!"_ a new voice interrupted.

Luffy turned around just in time to spot Ace running towards him. He grinned, waving his hands in the air. "Oh, Ace! Over here!" he turned to the man, about to apologize, only to realize the man had disappeared. "Eh? Where'd he go?"

Ace panted as he caught up. "Who were you talking to?"

"He was just here," Luffy muttered under his breath before pausing. He thought about the old man and his words before finally shaking his head. "No one, Ace. I was just… exploring."

_She calls to you, boy. Listen!_

* * *

 

"The Whitebeard brat, eh? How exciting." Of course, fate wasn't quite through messing with Luffy yet. After all, what were the chances of the boy finding a rival pirate crew—one that seemed to know him, in fact.

Luffy didn't even comment as he tried to brush past the men, bristling when they moved to block off his path. He could feel the pirate captain and first mate shuffle behind him, whispering. The first mate didn't seem to want to be here—his whole aura reeked of nervousness and fear. The captain was a whole different story, however. He practically oozed confidence and laughed at every logical thing that the first mate said. Luffy couldn't completely understand them, but he could hear snippets as both men drew closer.

"Whitebeard!. . . He'll kill . . . stupid!"

"Old man . . .know about . . . just a kid."

"A kid . . . 200 million berries!"

"I like . . . feisty . . .training more fun."

"Loyal . . .Whitebeard! You can't . . . change . . . .Strong."

A booming laugh cut off any other argument as Luffy turned to face his assailant, his face carefully blank. The pirate captain reached in and grabbed his hair before he even had the time to react, pulling the boy so he was face to face. "Kids are easily manipulated." he said, though Luffy doubted that the words were directed at the first-mate. "If we capture him now then we can _change_ his loyalties."

Luffy spat in his face.

The man reeled back, roaring in anger. Luffy wrenched his face out of the man's grip, jumping back and getting into a defensive position. The pirate captain whipped his face, eye blazing with anger.

He reached out to grab the boy again, but Luffy dodged. Two men came from behind, but he keened one in the stomach and sent another flying with a punch _._ The captain sneered, completely ignoring his first mate that was slowly backing up into the wall.

Luffy was sure that he was the only one who saw sense.

"You little brat!" he snarled, sending punches towards Luffy in a fury of emotion. Luffy dodged most, seeing as they were extremely sloppy and completely predictable, but one did catch him in the side of the face, sending him skidding back a few inches. The punch hadn't hurt, seeing as he was rubber; but it had enough force to knock him off balance. Luffy wondered if he could just walk out without him noticing.

The captain had other ideas, however, seeing as he suddenly received the confidence to rush forward, unsheathing his sword and striking the place where Luffy was standing moments before. Luffy jumped in the air, using the captain's head as a spring board and vaulting over the remaining pirates, offering a sly grin and he ran in the opposite direction. "See ya!"

* * *

 

"You bitch!" A large grown man snarled, pushing the woman he'd been harassing to the ground. The woman landed with a thud, not letting out a single sound. He breathing was ragged and movements were sluggish as she grabbed her injured shoulder, praying that the bleeding would stop.

" _Devil,"_ the man spat, clenching his fists in ill-founded anger. "You ain't got anything other than that fuckin' devil's blood. No wonder you have such a large bounty, Nico Robin. You think you could hide that?!"

The woman—Robin—pushed herself to her feet, blue eyes dancing in the dark moonlight. It was a ghost town, with no one but the man's friends to see him commit such crimes as the light faded from the world. This has how her life as been since she was just a kid; constantly running and fighting for her right to live in this world.

That is, until _he_ came.

"You're going to die here and we're going to take that _lovely_ bounty off of your pretty little head." he stuck his chin in the air as he cronies chuckled darkly around him. Of course this man had no clue that she _wasn't_ just some pretty little girl and that she'd been fighting since she could remember. She'd stayed alive long enough. She wasn't going to die today.

Dusting herself off, she stood proudly, facing off the men who threatened to take her life. "I'm sorry gentlemen, I made a promise, and so I can't die yet."

"Getin' cocky?" his voice took a sinister edge to it as he pulled out his sword and pointed it in her direction. "Don't underestimate us, girly. We're your worst nightmare."

"Ah," Robin said, forcing a smile. "I'm afraid that I'm _your_ worst nightmare. Drunk men wouldn't do you good. Ah, what's the quote? 'You can't pull out a sword unless you know how to use it.' It's advice that you _might_ want to listen to."

The man's smile dropped, rage overcoming all of his features. He swung his sword, though the woman just dodged it. She crossed her arms over her chest, whispered a word and her enemies fell to the ground, dead.

_Just like the others._

"You should choose your opponents better next time," She advised, walking down the streets once again. She turned around, looking up at the moon.

She wanted this to be over. She wanted to be done; to just die.

But she couldn't. Not when she had a promise to keep.

* * *

"Doctorine!" A small voice squeaked, closely followed by the clicking of hooves on the cave floor. "Doctorine! I got the medicine that you asked for."

The 130-year-old let out a barking laugh, slapping her small company on the back, sending him stumbling forward a few steps.

"Ah." she said, stretching her legs out. "Very good, Chopper."

The reindeer hybrid—Chopper—gave a large grin and said, "Complements don't make me happy at all, bastard!"

"Yeah, yeah." The woman rolled her eyes. "Now shoo. I have some patients to work on down in the village. Stay here and organize." she threw her medical bag over her shoulder and looked at the cave entrance with a slight glare. "Wapol's been taking his frustration out on the villagers and it's a doctor's job to patch them up."

"Yeah," Chopper agreed with a nod. "Come back soon, Doctorine!"

_I don't want to be alone again._

_Never again._


	13. Chapter 13

"I've been thinking, Marco . . . " Whitebeard rumbled as he watched Luffy run around the deck, laughing and playing around with the commanders. Marco looked up from his position beside the giant man's chair, something akin to curiosity lining his eyes. "We're in need of a new division, yes?"

"Yes," Marco narrowed his eyes just a bit. "But why bring that up now? We don't have anyone to fill the commander spot."

Whitebeard chuckled. "Or do we?"

Marco followed his eyes, staring at one man; boy, rather, who was still running around the deck like he always did. Marco's eyes flickered up to his captain, disbelief in his features. "He's still a kid!"

"A strong kid," Whitebeard remarked.

"He's fourteen!"

"Fifteen in a few weeks." Whitebeard replied with a light chuckle. "He's certainly strong enough and can hold his own. He has an interesting way of rallying his brothers. He'll protect them with his life."

"He's _fourteen."_

"I know that, brat." Whitebeard said, chuckling even more at his son's disbelief. "He's been with us since he was four; we've trained him since he can remember. We know that he'll never betray us. What more could we ask for?"

"Someone a big older." Marco muttered, crossing his arms over his chest with a sigh. "But if you really think so, Oyaji. You should ask him, though. Luffy's never really been interested in power of any sort."

Whitebeard just grinned, letting out a booming laugh and letting the world know that he didn't plan on taking no for an answer.

* * *

The party was in full swing by midnight when Whitebeard announced that Luffy would officially become the Seventeenth Division commander. All the crewmembers had heard the rumors that floated around the boat for a while now and knew it would only be a matter of time before the boy turned out to be something more than all of them.

Several crewmembers were moved into the newly created bunk as the other divisions were starting to overfill, causing stress for the other commanders. Luffy had no qualms with going around, and meeting his new divisionmates, somehow memorizing every name (with a few creative nicknames here and there) while he was at it.

At first, Luffy refused the position, much to the amusement of Oyaji and the surprise of the other commanders. But after much persuasion of the captain and (somewhat) of the first mate, Luffy had come into terms with it and accepted. Most were happy with the change, but a few were still a little sour and not quite ready for their baby brother to grow up yet.

"He's too young." Ace said, leaning against Marco and pointing his piece of meat at the said boy who was everywhere at once, talking and doing everything he possibly could.

Marco rolled his eyes. "That's what I said, yoi."

"Come on, guys." Thatch said, sliding next to Ace and throwing his arm around the fire-user. "He's plenty old and rather responsible. Plus, it takes a whole crap-ton of paperwork off my back, yeah? Kid's enjoying it as well. Just let him be."

"He's fourteen!" Ace yelped, throwing Thatch off of him and accidently setting his shoulders on fire.

"Technically he's fifteen." Marco said. "His birthday officially started almost twenty minutes ago."

Ace frowned at him. "Eh? What time is it?"

Marco shrugged and was about to answer when Thatch interrupted, "12:23 on the dot."

"What?" The fire-user stared wide-eyed at the tiny clock on Thatch's wrist, then glanced up suspiciously at the cook. "Why do you even have a watch? 'S not like it does you any good in battle."

Thatch grinned at him. "It's useful for parties. Tells me how long I have 'till everyone get's drunk."

"And when does everyone usually get drunk?"

Thatch hummed for a second, looking out at the party as everyone had a good time. "Ah, usually around one or so. One-thirty's when they start to spike other's drinks and two is when they start doing stupid stuff and then pass out."

Ace slammed his head on the desk. "Please don't let Luffy get drunk." While Marco nodded in agreement.

"Kid doesn't like alcohol anyways," Thatch grinned.

"Alcohol dissolves rubber, yoi," Marco said.

Ace turned to glare at Thatch, noticing the pink tint to his cheeks and the way his words were starting to slur together. "You're drunk."

"I am buzzed, not drunk, you idiot." Thatch corrected. "If I was drunk I wouldn't be coherent enough to watch everyone make a fool out of themselves. Oh! Y'know that Haruta's doing karaoke right now? She's actually got a pretty good voice, unlike Kingdew. Bad memories."

"You should probably go lie down, Thatch." Marco advised. "Before you end up hurting yourself or something, yoi."

"Geeze, Marco, cool it." Thatch rolled his eyes, jumping off the bench and stumbling around a bit. He flicked his head towards the party that was still in full swing. "Someone's got to look after those kids, yeah? I'll be fine. Honestly." And with that, he stalked off.

"Someone's going to spike his drink." Ace stated.

The phoenix simply rolled his eyes, turning away from the party and looking out into the cooling ocean. "Of course, yoi."

* * *

"You tired, Lu?" Ace asked, running his hand through the now fifteen-year old's hair. The said boy just mumbled something incoherent, snuggling deeper into Ace's side as they leaned on the rail on deck. "What? Don't mumble, idiot. I can't understand you."

Luffy shifted in his arms. "Too much paperwork."

Ace snorted, cuffing the back of Luffy's head. "Quit complaining. I'm doing half of yours as it is."

"Too much," Luffy whined, eyes still closed.

"Honestly," The fire-user just rolled his eyes with a fond smile on his lips. He looked out to the sea, eyes catching the outline of an island that he'd been warned about earlier when he went and talked to Marco. "Y'know we're heading towards an island soon? It'll be the first island you visit as a commander. Government will probably find out too and your bounty will get a raise."

The only reply he got was a soft snore.

* * *

A light laugh filled the air as yet another enemy fell to the ground. Multiple arms sprouted from the walls, incasing yet another poor, hopeless soul as his neck was broken with a dull snap.

No more rushed at the woman as she stared at the morning's newspaper. The men growled, holding their swords up, yet did not move. The woman was dangerous, even with her calm demeanor and relaxed personality. The woman knew that she was offending them since she had yet to pay them any attention, but why should she? After all, they were just others after her head.

It wasn't like this was a new experience. This is how her life is and will always be.

But looked at the papers, the edges wrinkled and a little bloody from the small skirmish, she couldn't help but think she still had one more saving grace that had just exposed himself to the true wonders (also horrors) of their world.

She laughed again, a hand going up to cover her mouth as her eyes sparkled. "My, my, Luffy. You've sure grown up."

When was the last time she saw him? Back when he was only eight, no taller than her waist. With his sparkling eyes and dazzling smile, how could she forget about him? He was her guardian angel, even if he didn't know it.

Did he still remember her? Did he still remember that promise that he made so long ago? After all, they'd only know each other for a mere hour. Was that really enough time for someone to realize the pain of another? To promise to chase away her shadows?

Was that enough to remember that he had healed a heart that was long dead?

_"You're my nakama, Robin!"_

She didn't know if he remembered her. She didn't know if he still cared. She didn't know if he'd ever come back, but he was her last hope in this world. She'd hold on for as long as she could and keep waiting.

Waiting for him to grow up; to show the world that he wasn't going to mess around.

A feral growl erupted from the leader, making the woman turn her head towards him, her eyes emotionless and uncaring. The man stalked forward, back hunched as he held out his sword in front of him. "Nico Robin, I'd give up if I were you. You are out numbered."

The woman—Robin—quirked an eyebrow as her old, uncaring features turned into that of amusement. She stepped forward.

"Out numbered, yes." she said calmly, shutting her eyes and crossing her arms over her chest. "But outmatched? No. I'm sorry, maybe next time, Mr. Bounty Hunter. After all, I don't have much time to kill."

* * *

"Oh!" a voice exclaimed into the forest, causing birds to fly up and way from the sound. "Hawky! Benn! Look at this!"

A redheaded man was up and laughing, stepping over men that were no doubt still out cold from the previous party that was held last night. The only three that seemed to be standing were the redhead from before and his first mate, along with the Shibukai, Mihawk.

"What is it this time, Shanks?" The Shibukai said, voice uncaring as he calmly sipped his wine. Benn looked up at the man he called captain, but did not talk, instead going back to the book that he was reading before, figuring that Mihawk could deal with him.

The redhead's grin could split his face in half.

"Have I ever told you about Luffy?" Benn raised an eyebrow at his captain, looking up at Shanks. He didn't usually talk about Luffy so openly, especially towards people outside of his crew.

"I don't think you have." Mihawk answered, calmly setting away his wine for the time being.

Shanks laughed. "Well then! He's one of Whitebeard's brats. Pretty unique, though. I like the kid."

Benn rolled his eyes. "Everyone likes the kid, Shanks."

Mihawk ignored the first mate. "Whitebeard's brats? I thought you held no interest for the Yonko other than the occasional _talk."_

The redhead laughed once again, sitting down next to his friend, newspaper still clutched in his hands. "I don't, but Luffy's different. He's the youngest on the crew—In fact, last time I saw him, he was only seven! We made a promise. He's holding on to my hat until he completes that promise. "

"Mugiwara no Luffy?" recognition seemed to flash in Mihawk's dangerous, yellow eyes. "I've heard of him, now that I think about. Your stupidity is affecting me, Akagami."

Shanks just flashed him a grin. "Nah, that's on your own accord. Buy anyway! You won't believe it! The government's in hysterics and everything! Luffy's really growing up!"

"Mm?" Benn hummed, going back to his book before. "Did his bounty increase again? Last time I checked it was at 400 million. I didn't think it would go higher than that until the kid did something really special."

Shanks snorted, rolling his eyes. "No, not the bounty. But it's something even better!"

"Get on with it, Akagami." Mihawk said, tired of the man's yammering.

"Luffy's a Whitebeard Commander now!"

Benn's book dropped from his hands and he made a sound of surprise. "Excuse me?"

"It's true!" The grin reappeared and the morning paper was shoved into the first mate's hands. "Little Luffy's all grown up now!"

* * *

"What do you want, Sengoku?" Sakazuki said as he slammed open the doors to Marineford, a displeased frown on his face.

Sengoku only looked up from his paperwork, eyes narrowed as he motioned to one of the seats of the round table where the Shibukai usually sat. "Wait for the others. They'll be here any minute."

Sakazuki let out a displeased grunt and sat down, arms crossed over his chest. Not a moment later, the door burst open once again and Aokiji and Kizaru walked in, heads held high. Sengoku once again motioned for them to take a seat and they did so without any complaint.

Sengoku simply stacked up his paperwork and set it aside, keeping up his formal façade as he does any time when he's in the presents of others.

"We have two rather important things to discuss today. Both of them having to do with Whitebeard. The first is Whitebeard has elected a new commander—Mugiwara no Luffy and has created a new division. This man's whereabouts are currently unknown, but he was last seen on an island in the New World. " he sighed. "Though this is not the most troubling thing."

Kizaru quirked an eyebrow, his lips still puckered. "Ohhh? This is interesting. Would you care to continue, Sengoku?"

"We managed to track down the heritage of Mugiwara and it is not good," Sengoku said, closing his eyes and folding his hands on the desk. "He is the son of the revolutionary, Monkey D. Dragon."

None of the admirals reacted outwardly, though they were all surprised. The brat had come up on their radar only a few years ago out of the blue. There was no family, no heritage for them to be worried about but now all of a sudden they find out he's Dragon's spawn? It was most troubling for them all.

"While we were searching through Mugiwara's heritage, we found something even more interesting." Sengoku said, cracking open his eyes. "Now, I know all of you remember the suspicion of the Pirate King having a son."

Sakazuki narrowed his fierce eyes. "And what about it?"

"As it turns out, we never found him." Sengoku replied. "The woman hunt all those years ago was a complete waste. However, we finally found him. The son of Gol D. Roger—Second Division Commander, Gol D. Ace."


	14. Chapter 14

"You're growing old, Thatch!" Luffy said brightly, jumping on to his friend's shoulders with a playful laugh. Thatch let out a grunt. "Happy Birthday!

"Oof!" Thatch skidded a bit, laughing as they both crashed to the deck with a dull thud. Luffy quickly scrambled up and sat on Thatch's chest. They boy's eyes sparkled as he looked down at his long time friend and brother—practically father—with _that_ look.

"I'm only getting old 'cause brats like you keep jumping on me!" Thatch sat up, his grin turning into a small smile when the sixteen-year-old slid down on his lap. He wrapped his arms around the boy, pulling him into a tight hug, "Thank you, Luffy. I really appreciate it."

Luffy laughed, taking his own arms and wrapping them around the man's waist. Thatch couldn't help but think about the time all those years ago when he was only a boy, so small and fragile, ready to break under the smallest pressure. He'd sure grown, hadn't he? He's a proud commander, now!

Thatch let go of the boy but Luffy refused to let go of him. Thatch smirked and rolled his eyes as he tugged the boy's hands a bit, only making them wrap tighter around his waist. "Come on, Luffy. I've got to go make dinner, yeah?"

He was surprised when the word 'dinner' didn't even seem to ring up in Luffy's mind. Instead of jumping up and yelling about food, the boy just snorted.

"No. The other cook's said that they'd take care of it. It's your day off." Luffy grinned up at the man. "We're going to party tonight!"

"A party, huh?" Thatch laughed. "I'd watch out for anything that Ace gives you. He wasn't too happy with the last stunt you pulled on him."

Luffy brightened up at the mention of his prank and let out a small laugh. "Ace was funny, though! He was all rainbow-y and everything!"

"'Cause you put crayons on him and watched as they melted." It was rather creative, Thatch had to admit. The question was; where did he get the crayons in the first place? "Took him a two hours to try and get the red splatter of the middle of his chest and get the blue out of his hair."

"Technically, he melted the crayons on himself." Luffy said innocently. "I just put them there, I didn't melt them or do anything like that."

"You know that Ace tends to set himself on fire when he wakes up, though." Thatch let out a laugh, shaking his head fondly at the boy's antics. "Still, just watch you back, okay? I don't want to be the one babysitting if someone spikes you drink."

"Don't worry! I'll be fine." Luffy jumped up, putting his hand on his hat and grinned before rushing off to do god knows what. Thatch just stared at the boy, realizing just how perfect he fit in this family.

After all, he was a proud child of the sea.

* * *

It was a marine ship in the distance, something that had everyone on edge. Most of the crew was on deck, preparing for battle. The sound of clicks and the occasional yell echoed onboard. From where he was standing, Luffy could even here the men below deck, preparing the cannons just in case the situation worsened.

Ace walked up from behind the boy, ruffling his already messy hair and nudging his shoulder playfully. Luffy turned his head to face the fire-user, a grin on his face. Despite the lax appearance, the second division commander could see the tense lines that covered his body.

"How dangerous do you think they'll be?" Luffy asked, eyeing the marine ship.

It was close to firing range now; they could just make out the tiny specks of the marines running around deck, preparing themselves for whatever was to come. The Whitebeard Pirates would not attack first; they would wait to see if the ship is friendly or if it's going to attack. If they started attacking . . . then, they'll fight back without a second thought.

"Dunno," Ace answered, shaking his head. His grey eyes losing the remaining humor quickly. After all, it was war. Emotion will only slow you down. "Marines are strange. They always change tactics, always change men, always change ships. It's annoying, especially, when you can't predict what they're going to do. For all we know it could be Garp coming for yet another _visit."_

"Garp's weird." Luffy huffed; rubbing the spot when he got hit every time the old marine comes for a visit. "And his personality changes fast."

Ace chuckled, shaking his head fondly. "At least you didn't grow up with him and his training. Me 'n Sabo were practically dead each night! He'd throw us up into trees, bushes, anything he could find really."

"Mmm, I think his favorite spot to throw me is the mast." Luffy answered, thinking back to the many times that he'd been thrown into the wooden frame. "He keeps using Haki whenever he's here and it really hurts, Ace!"

"At least he has trouble catching you." Ace retorted. "Marco and Thatch seem to take it as a joke. They'll throw me out on deck when I'm trying to hide or hint to Garp where I'm hiding. For you . . . well, let's just say that they're a little more protective. Thatch was _pissed_ the last time Garp was here."

"He threw me off the boat," Luffy remembered, shaking his head. "Thatch came and saved me afterward."

"Yeah. What a load of bull—" He was cut off by a high-pitched humming of a cannon ball right before it landed. Distantly he heard the roar of the crew as the lifted up their swords, calling out Oyaji's name.

"Watch out!" Vista was on the scene before Ace could even move his feet. Using his favored sword, the commander cut the canon ball cleanly in half, smirking as he landed and the canon ball sailed overhead and into the water on the opposite side of the ship.

The pirates let out another roar, crowding at the edge of the ship. No commander made a move. Fossa muttered something under his breath, and rolled his eyes. Ace had to wonder—just for a second—what the man was thinking about.

The marines let out a cry of their own, drowned out as cannon fires ran out from the hull of the _Moby Dick_. Most of the cannon shots were misses and others were deflected but a few did hit, damaging the mast and railway of the blue ship.

They were close now; close enough that any second they'd be able to board the Moby Dick. The pirates were ready for them though. With years of training and experience that far exceeded these rookie marines, the pirates were confident that they'd win yet another battle.

The two hulls touched, the pirates jumping across the ship before the marines could even lower the planks. In the crowd, Ace noticed Luffy's red vest disappear through all the people and rolled his eyes. The boy probably wasn't going to fight, just keep an eye on his division and knock out an occasional marine that might cause a problem. The other commanders, minus Izo (who was fighting with Luffy to make sure the brat didn't get in too much trouble) and Namur (who was screwing with the currents under the marine's boat) stayed on the _Moby Dick,_ being Oyaji's last line of defense. They'd occasionally knock a marine—that his shipbrothers had missed—back into the ocean or away from their ship. Other than that, they were to stay stationary the whole time and just watch. This was training for the rookies, basically. It gave them experience and made them stronger, both traits that were needed on Whitebeard's ship.

Some time during the battle, Vista had walked over to Ace, his eyes still glued on the other ship. The marines' numbers were dwindling down now and Ace knew that it wouldn't take much more time until the bastards retreated. They did this once a week—if they were lucky— so everyone was good at knowing when the marines would just turn around and run. It was common for them.

It wasn't until he heard Luffy shout ' _pistol!'_ from the other side of the deck that he stared paying attention. He glanced over a Vista, an eyebrow raised. He got the same look back from the swordsman. Ace wasn't necessarily worried, but he knew that Luffy wouldn't use his devil fruit power unless it was absolutely needed. Plus, the boy wouldn't dare to interrupt a fight unless it was clear that they were losing.

A scream broke through the air and cheering could be heard, though Ace couldn't tell if it was marines or his nakama. He heard Luffy's voice cry out another attack and then Izo's voice yelling something (it didn't sound like an attack name, so Ace calmed down a bit. If Izo wasn't in the battle, then that meant that it was just a normal battle).

Suddenly, the noise stopped all together.

Ace raced forward, hands reaching out and grasping onto the rail, looking up at the ship and waiting for _something. Anything._ To happen. To make the noise start up again. His knuckles were turning white and just as Ace was about to jump over and help, a large explosion rocked the marine's ship.

Shouts of the Whitebeard Pirates were heard as they jumped back to their respected ship, laughing, whooping and playfully shoving each other as they celebrated yet another victory. Izo and Luffy were the last to jump from the boat, stepping out the railing and landing on the deck. Luffy had an injured man—someone that Ace recognized to be from Kingdew's division—over his shoulder, grinning like an idiot. Izo was still smiling, but something in his expression told everyone that something had happened.

The marine ship was long gone by now around the horizon line. They could no longer hear the cries of the marines as they helped their fallen comrades or the cursing that spewed from their mouths. The only sound was the happy cries of his brothers and sisters as they filtered around deck, checking their siblings for injuries.

The nurses rushed over and quickly took the injured man off of Luffy's shoulder, thanking him for saving the man. Luffy just waved them off and bounded over wearing the same happy smile on his face. Izo followed the boy, arms crossed over his chest as he looked like he was trying to persuade Luffy to do something. Luffy, however, had other ideas as he kept shaking his head saying something that seemed to only piss off Izo more.

When Luffy was close enough, Ace noticed that his red shirt was slightly torn and a darker color was seeping into the fabric. The fire user's eyes narrowed, arms crossed as the boy approached. Luffy didn't seem to notice or didn't care until Ace lashed out, grabbing the boy's other shoulder and pulling him closer to inspect what he assumed was a wound.

Izo rolled his eyes as Luffy struggled, eyes wide. "Told you he'd notice."

"Shut up," Luffy retorted. His eyes glanced back at Ace and Vista, smile slowly slipping from his face. "Ace, I'm fine, really. Let me go, please?"

"What's this?" Ace's voice was ice, ignoring the exasperated look from Izo and Vista and a mutter of 'brother complex'.

"It's nothing! There was just this guy who was pretty strong and he sliced my shoulder when I was helping out."

Luffy looked at the cross dresser as if he were begging for help, eyes wide and full of innocents. Izo, use to the look by now, just shrugged and waved him off. Luffy stuck his tongue out at the betrayal.

"Go to the nurses, Luffy."

" _Ace."_ Luffy whined, yanking his shoulder from the fire-user's grasp. "I'm fine! I'm fine! I just need some meat and sleep and I'll be good as new! Meat heals everything."

"Oh no," Ace let out a barking laugh. "No, _no_. You are going to the nurses even if I have to drag you there myself."

"Whoa—Ace! I'm fine!" Luffy tried to struggle out of his grasp but couldn't budge, earning snickers from Izo and Vista who were watching the whole scene with amused expressions. "Help?"

"You're on your own, Luffy." Vista said with a smile, walking away so he could go check up on his division.

Izo just took one look at the youth and shook his head, following behind Vista. "I'm not dealing with Ace, sorry. Better luck next time."

"You guys suck." Luffy pouted, still trying to get his arm out of his big brother's grasp. He let out another yelp when Ace decided that he had enough and lifted the boy into his shoulders, ignoring the demands for Luffy to be put down immediately. "Ace! What're you doing? Put me down! _Put me down!"_

"We're getting you medical attention, idiot." Ace grumbled, his eyes still narrowed.

"Ace, I'm fine!" Luffy tried to protest for the last time, but the words fell deaf to the fire user's ears. His older brother was too stubborn to change his mind.

* * *

By the time the _Moby Dick_ arrived to aid their allies, they knew it was already too late. The battle was over, with bodies floating in the ocean. The marines had lead a swift and dangerous attack. The only thing they left behind were their dead.

Luffy watched as Oyaji closed his eyes. He knew it hurt Pops more than anything to see his sons die, even if they weren't part of the main crew. Their allies were still their friends and they still sought to protect them. And when they failed…

Their allied ships burned in the sea.

"Help the wounded," Oyaji eventually spoke, his tone flat. Luffy wasn't the only one to flinch, looking at his father with worry. Fossa, who leaned against the rail, sighed and closed his eyes as well. "We will bury the dead."

"All of the bodies?" Rakuyo asked.

"All of them," Whitebeard said. "Go."

The commanders dispersed, finding any of the living that they could. By the time they accounted for everyone, the sun was beginning to set, casting red and orange streaks in the sky. Luffy pulled the last body from one of the burning ships before placing it in the growing pile. He dripped from sweat, his body covered in blood that was not his own.

They had buried the bodies, both marine and pirate, and wished them well. Tears were shed as his siblings grieved the loss of their friends.

The downside to being a commander, Luffy found out, was that everyone looked up to _them_ when they needed support. To stay high when everyone else is low.

Luffy wanted to cry, but he couldn't.

"Oyaji," Blamenco approached their grieving father. "One of our ships—the _Moby Four_ —she's been damaged. She can't sail anymore."

Whitebeard stood, seemingly untouchable in the soft light. It cast shadows on the deck. "Then we will bury her as well."

Blamenco nodded and sighed. Luffy knew that he had been one of the ones that built the _Mobys_ —six of them in total. The _Moby Dick, Moby One, Moby Two, Moby Three, Moby Four and Moby Five_. Those ships had been with the crew longer than most of the crew had. To lose one of them was just as bad as losing a family member.

Luffy wandered over to the rail, stopping next to Marco. Marco gave him a soft smile that he returned before watching as Blamenco took a small boat out towards the downed ship. Armed with nothing more than a torch, Luffy watched as the man said his goodbyes.

"The sea can be unforgiving," Marco said softly. Luffy nodded in agreement.

Blamenco held up the torch, the ship catching fire immediately. Even though she was smaller than the Moby Dick, she was still an impressive ship. The crew that sailed on her back loved her; Luffy could tell. He could hear their cries even from here.

Luffy closed his eyes. The Whitebeard pirates had lost too much today.

_I'm sorry._

His eyes snapped open and he jolted to the side, not expecting to hear a voice. Marco glanced at him, but didn't comment. He stared at the sea, thinking that he made it up.

_I'm so sorry._

Luffy's eyes widened as he stared at the burning ship. "She's crying."

Marco turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"She's crying," Luffy repeated, almost in a daze. The voice continued, repeating fears and regrets. "She doesn't want to die. She wants to take us on more adventures, but she knows she's not going to make it. She's sad."

"Luffy… what are you—"

"She's apologizing to her crew," Luffy continued. "She loves them more than anything, she just wants them to be safe. She's happy too, that she got to make memories with all of them."

Marco eventually followed his eyes, only for them to land on the small whale figurehead that was slowly disappearing beneath the waves. "The ship? You're talking about the _Moby Four_?"

Luffy nodded his head slowly.

"You can hear her?"

Luffy turned to Marco, eyebrows furrowed. "You can't?"

"None of us can."

"But she's…" Luffy stared out at the sea just as the ship disappeared completely.

"Luffy, you can hear the ship—"

"I—" Luffy flinched when Marco put a hand on his shoulder. He didn't see the flash of hurt in the man's eyes, turning away from the burning ship. It was _too much_ , to soon.

He could hear her; hear her cries. He could hear the cries of her crew. He could hear the cries of the other ships. He didn't know _why,_ but didn't care. It hurt more than anything to watch her go down. There was so much going in his head that it _hurt._ It felt like he was getting torn to pieces. He grabbed the side of his head, ignoring Marco as the man tried to get his attention.

"I—I'm going inside," Luffy didn't want to talk about it. Didn't want to hear it. He just wanted everything to _stop._

He turned and walked towards his room, the _Moby Four's_ last words were stuck in head like a broken den-den mushi.

_I was happy! Thank you, for sailing with me!_

* * *

The sound of footsteps could be heard as Luffy jumped across the roofs, looking for some of his division. They'd gone missing about an hour ago and Luffy was sent out to go and find them and bring them back. They were, after all, his responsibility. Plus, he was getting a little bit worried himself. This was a pirate town and although they were in Paradise and Luffy trusted his crewmates, some of the rookie captains here could knock them to the ground like flies.

Yells echoed in the streets as yet another skirmish happened in the dirt road. He could hear the laughing of a voice, "These are Whitebeard Pirates? How pathetic! And here I thought that I'd actually get a challenge!"

Another, much smoother voice interrupted the grumbling. "I wouldn't get so worked up, Eustass-ya. After all, they're just underlings."

"Piss off, rookies!" A voice that Luffy recognized yelled, obviously sounding frustrated and angry. "We don't have time for the likes of you! Get going or our commander is going to show up soon! He'll kick your sorry asses!"

"My, my," The second voice said, sounding more amused than threatened. "How rude. We were just having a little fun, right, Eustass-ya?"

"Shut up, Trafalgar. What the hell are you doing here anyway?" The first voice growled, sounding close to attacking the other.

By now, Luffy could just barley make out the figures. The five missing from his division that he easily recognized, facing off what seemed like two separate pirate crews. The first man was scowling at the other with flaming red hair and his body was covered in metal. The other was much more relaxed, smirking at the redhead as if the whole situation amused him. He was tapping his long sword on his shoulder. A few dozen men stood behind them, glaring at one another as they took sides.

"I'm simply waiting for their—" the second man gestured to the Whitebeard pirates who were still growling and holding up their swords as if the threaten the two captains away. "—commander to show up. I've been _dying_ to meet one."

"Well—!" Luffy shouted, gaining everyone's attention as he jumped from the building, landing in front of his division while holding his hat on his head. He was grinning as he slid to a stop, only feet away from the two men that were harassing his family. "It seems you don't have to wait.

"Commander Luffy!" He heard the happy shouts of his nakama behind him and his grin widened. He straightened his back and stood a full height. The redhead seemed shocked, though tried not to show it and the black-haired male was still smirking. Luffy snorted, his face quickly loosing its grin. His dark eyes narrowed, even though he knew that he shouldn't fight them unless he absolutely had to. "I don't appreciate it when people threaten my family."

"He's a kid . . .?" He heard the redhead mumble before shaking his head. "Ma, whatever. The easier it'll be for us then, right?"

Luffy crossed his arms over his chest and snorted. This is why he _hated_ being in Paradise; it was full of overconfident rookies and a bunch of others who thought they had a chance at taking down one of Whitebeard's men. "Underestimating people on the Grand Line will get you killed."

"Funny, coming from a brat like you." The redhead said, nonchalantly, rolling his eyes as if this were some big joke. Even the other man let out an amused snort.

"I'm sixteen!" Luffy snapped, his hands curling into fists. Then he closed his eyes and unclenched them, telling himself that rookies weren't worth it. Feeling that this situation might escalate quickly, Luffy turned his head towards his division (being sure to still keep his eyes on his opponents) and said, "Get back to the ship. I can handle things here."

They took one look at him before turning and running back, laughing and shouting things that Luffy was sure were about him. A small smile graced his lips and rolled his eyes. His division was very enthusiastic. His smile slipped when he turned back to the pirates, glad that they hadn't attacked them while he was talking. "If you choose to attack me, then go ahead. I'll kick your asses _but_ attacking any Whitebeard Pirate is considered a declaration of war against my family."

"Don't worry, Mugiwara-ya." The black-haired guy said, his smirk widening. "We're not here to attack you just yet. We haven't introduced ourselves yet, have we? How rude. I am Trafalgar Law and the brute next to me is Eustass-ya. I guess you could call him Kidd, though. "

The names clicked into place in Luffy's mind and he put his hands behind his head. "You're those super rookies that are stirring up trouble for the government."

"Oh?" Trafl—How the hell was he supposed to pronounce a name like that? He'd just call him Traffy—said, curiosity lining his gaze. "You've heard of us? I'm honored, Mugiwara-ya."

"Haruta and Rakuyo were talking about you the other day." Luffy answered, a grin appearing on his face when he thought of the bitching match that ensued between the two commanders. "I don't read the papers often."

"Well then that's rather disappointing. Isn't that right, Eustass-ya?"

"Shut the hell up, bastard." Kidd said, harshly. For a moment, Luffy was sure he was going to attack the other man, but held back the last minute.

"How barbaric," Traffy didn't seem to be affected by the intentions at all. His gaze returned to Luffy as if he was thinking about something. "Having a bounty so young . . . You're almost like that woman, Nico Robin was it?"

Something flashed in the back of Luffy's mind. The image of a young woman with pain that she shouldn't have. Someone that was nice to him and accepted him for who he was. Someone that didn't care about the labels that were put on him. _Bastard. Monster. Devil._

"Don't talk bad about Robin." he growled. Robin was his nakama and _no one_ talked bad about his nakama.

"I never did," Taffy replied, ignoring the mutter from Eustass. "I was simply comparing the two of you together. Though, for your reaction, I have to say that my curiosity is piped. Do you know her?"

"Yes." Luffy answered, simply, glancing over his shoulder in the direction that their boat was anchored. It was time that he stared heading back . . . "I met her a few years ago. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go."

Traffy chuckled, watching him leave silently. "I look forward to our future meetings, Mugiwara-ya."

* * *

Luffy was glad to be back in the New World. He really missed the place when they'd go off and explore Paradise. He knew that Oyaji needed to check up on his territories, but he really hated the arrogant bastards that covered the whole ocean. Those said bastards were filtered out by the time they get to the New World, but they do see one on occasions.

He hummed as he skipped along beside Ace and Thatch, just enjoying their company. The island that they landed on was rather boring with nothing really to do. Apparently, it was one of the most peaceful islands in the whole New World. The only issue that the town's people faced was the giant forest near the south side of the island. Apparently, anyone who went in there never came out.

So, of course, Ace and Luffy wanted to explore it.

The only reason they hadn't bolted to the forest was the fact that Thatch had Luffy trapped and wasn't letting go and Ace didn't like exploring without his family. It took away the fun in finding something exciting when he couldn't share it with everyone.

"Thatch!" Luffy was whining and flailing around in his brother's grip. "Lemme go! I want to go explore the cool forest! Maybe, we'll find meat and bring it back. Right, Ace?"

"Yeah!" Ace said, nodding his head. "Come on, Thatch! You're being a stick in the mud. Aren't you supposed to be the fun brother? 'Cause right now I'm tempted to go find Marco."

"Both of you are big babies." Thatch rolled his eyes but did not let go of Luffy's head. Instead, he continued to walk down the street as if he wasn't being bit by the sixteen-year-old commander. "I thought you were hungry and now you want to go _away_ from the food?"

"We can find something to eat in the forest." Ace reasoned, shaking his head. "It's not like we don't know how. I've cooked plenty of things in my life."

"All of it ends up being burned." Thatch rolled his eyes and was about to say something else when something caught the corner of Luffy's eye and he tensed up, no longer struggling or walking for that matter. Both Thatch and Ace stopped as well, looking around.

It was then that Luffy noticed that they were the only ones on the street. There were no people, no shops, no nothing. The only thing that stood was some old buildings that looked like they'd fall apart at any time. A gust of wind blew through the place, making strange whistling noises.

Thatch grip loosened and Luffy pulled his head out from under his arm just as another white and blue flash caught the corner of his eyes once again. Ace apparently saw it, as well, letting out a feral growl and lighting his shoulders on fire. " _Marines_."

A low chuckle brought the commander's attention to a lone figure in the streets. He was huge and bulky, wearing a Hawaiian shirt with a marine cape fluttering in the wind. Luffy couldn't read the back, so he had no idea what rank this man was, but by the way Thatch and Ace tensed up even more and the power emitting from the man, he was nothing to laugh about.

"Ace? Thatch?" he whispered, breaking the silence. "Who's he?"

Instead of answering, both Thatch and Ace stepped in front of the boy as if they were protecting him. Luffy gaped at both of their backs. He could handle himself! He didn't need to be protected.

Fire exploded around the commanders making a circle. Luffy could feel the blaze licking at the back of his ankles, but wasn't bothered. It was Ace's fire and Ace's fire would never hurt them. But it worried him… their reaction.

Thatch pulled out his sword, pointing it at the man with a deadly gleam in his eyes. "Hello, _Akainu_."


	15. Chapter 15

"Luffy, _run_." Ace said immediately, to the boy after the pieces clicked into place in his mind. They were not stupid; both Thatch and Ace knew that Luffy was strong but an admiral was over his head. Hell, it might even be too much for the two seasoned commanders even if they _did_ work together. If they could get Luffy back to the ship and let Oyaji know . . . then, they might have a chance in this battle. Oyaji was stronger than Akainu and wouldn't let the Marine Admiral touch any one of his sons.

"But—" Luffy tried to protest, his eyes wide. He took a step back, almost stepping on the circle that Ace had made to protect them from the weaker marines who had no doubt surrounded them.

"Luffy," this time it was Thatch, catching onto Ace's plan immediately. "Get out of here. Get back to the ship and tell Oyaji."

Luffy sent them one more worried glance, his shoulders tense, but it didn't look like he was going to protest. Ace was thankful for that, at least. Luffy knew his limits and knew that Akainu would kick his ass easily if given the chance.

Without another glance, Luffy jumped over the ring of fire and sprinted as fast as he could (which was really damn fast) down the dirt roads, kicking up dust. Some shots rang out from the alleyways and the rooftops, Ace could only guess that the other marines were trying to stop him.

"Do not think it will be so easy, Son of Dragon." Akainu's cold voice brought all the attention back to him. Ace and Thatch went rigid. The only ones who knew about Luffy's father were the commanders and they'd never tell anyone. How could the marines know about such a safely guarded secret?

The Marine Admiral brought a fist up and it easily shifted to magma before Ace or Thatch could even move. With a roar, the Marine launched an attack at the younger, missing him by mere inches. The attack connected with the ground and exploded, sending Luffy flying into a building with a surprised yelp.

"Leave—!" Ace jumped up, flaming fist raised to stop another attack from hurting his little brother. "Luffy alone!"

The marine easily brought up an arm and blocked the attack with a disapproving scowl. It might not have hurt the man, but it did distract him long enough for Luffy to get up and run once again, this time able to get out of range and sprint back to the ship.

Ace jumped back, diminishing the fire circle that he'd created. Thatch glanced at him with a nod, gripping his sword tightly as a black armor surrounded it. With fist and sword raised, they jumped in the air with battle cries.

They would protect their family no matter what.

* * *

Luffy could feel the burns on his arms and chest as he ran. Every time he moved, he held in a hiss of pain. He kept telling himself that he'd been through worse and his brothers were still back there, risking their lives so he could get away.

The faster he got back to the ship, the better of a chance Ace and Thatch will have. Marines were yelling behind him to stop; that he was a coward for running, but Luffy didn't care. His brother's lives were much more important than his pride. As long as he got to the ship, they'd be fine. Oyaji could handle anyone. He was the strongest man in the world!

A gun rang out and a bullet whizzed past his hair, cutting off a few strands. He didn't have time to deal with these bastards! Thinking quickly, Luffy suddenly turned into an alley, confusing the marines. Using the confusion to his advantage, he jumped on the roof, plowing through marines quickly.

"Up there!" One marine shouted, aiming his gun and firing a shot. It caught Luffy in the leg and he stumbled, but quickly caught himself.

_Seastone…_

But bullets wouldn't hurt him. They _couldn't_ ; not when Thatch and Ace's lives were riding on his back.

His Observation Haki was at its limits with so many figures around him. He didn't notice the dagger that was thrown at him until it was too late. He hissed in pain when it grazed his side, bleeding immediately. It was a small wound, but enough that it might hinder him in a later battle. The last thing he needed was more unneeded injuries.

Finally— _finally!_ —The ship came into view. Its whale head standing proud and tall against the ocean waves as the waves crashed against the hull. He could make out all the crewmates going around deck, laughing and joking around, blissfully unaware of the impending danger. Luffy wanted to shout at them, yell that this wasn't the time! They were in more danger than they'd been in a long time!

A stray thought crossed his mind; _where were all the towns people?_ He'd seen none since Akainu showed up. The boy narrowed his eyes. Was this a trap from the beginning? And if it was, how long had it been planned out?

His sandaled feet clicked as he ran on the wooden roofs. He could no longer hear the marine's yelling or gunshots behind him and took that as a sign that he'd lost them. With one giant bound, Luffy launched himself off the roof, sailing through the air and landing on the deck (ignoring the startled stares from the other crewmates and the scream that would've normally been funny). Blood dripped from his wound as he gasped for air, standing up and running towards Oyaji's seat in the middle of the deck.

"Luffy!" Someone cried out his name and Luffy whipped his head to the side, seeing Marco jogging towards him, concern written all over his features. Luffy paid him no mind; he could listen when Oyaji heard the news first.

Luffy stumbled, pain lacing through his back as the burns were moved. He quickly caught himself, still gasping for air.

"Oyaji!" He yelled rather breathlessly, his eyes wide. The giant man looked down at his son for a second before scooping him up and depositing the young commander into his large lap. "Akainu— Admiral Sakazuki is here!"

Gasps were heard around the deck and everyone dropped what they were doing to listen. An eerie silence washed over the deck as they waited for their father's reaction.

"Akainu?" his voice was emotionless and a blank look crossed his face. A large finger came and felt the burns along Luffy's arm, earning a wince from the younger. The great man suddenly stood up causing Luffy to slide off of his lap and onto the wooden deck.

"Ace and Thatch," Whitebeard said, grabbing his weapon from the side of his seat. The others took this as a sign of battle and raced off to grab their own weapons. "They're still fighting Akainu, yes?"

Luffy nodded, ignoring the nurses as they scurried around, patching up the bleeding wound on his side and putting a clear-sticky substance on his burns. The young commander stood up, met with protests by the nurses as they ordered him to sit back down, as they were not done treating him.

Oyaji's eyes narrowed, "Then, we must go help them." Most of the pirates had gathered back up of deck, holding swords, guns, daggers, anything really. They were all tense and ready; they knew that in this battle many would fall to the hands of the enemy.

"Luffy." The commander looked up at being addressed, staring into the eyes of his father. "Do you think you can lead us to the place where Ace and Thatch are?"

"Yes." Luffy turned his back to the giant man. They were going to save the two, no matter what! After all, Luffy would never let his brothers die.

* * *

"Oof!" Thatch grunted as he was sent into yet another tree by the Admiral's fists. Ace wasn't doing much better, smashing through a rock not a moment later. Fresh blood dripped down his head but he still stood up, Ace following close behind.

They'd managed to drive the Admiral to the forest on the outskirts of the town. He was more worried about dodging the Admiral's attacks and quite frankly, Thatch didn't want his insides burned to a crisp.

"Damn," Ace muttered beside the commander, eyes narrowed as they watched their opponent getting ready to launch another attack. He raised his fist, lighting it on fire with a frown that illuminated by the dim light. "There's no end to this. It'd be great if we had some backup."

"They'll come soon." Thatch answered. Immediately jumping to the side as a giant ball of magma rushed past him, exploding in the distance and sending him tumbling. He pushed himself up so he was leaning on his elbows, coughing up blood.

"They'll be here soon." He whispered, almost as if he were trying to reassure himself.

The one thing he was glad for is the fact that Luffy was not here. Because even if they died, right here, right now, their little brother would be safe; Oyaji wouldn't let anyone hurt the boy, even if it meant him protecting with his own life. In fact, Thatch would be surprised if Oyaji (or Marco for the matter) would let the boy come at all. After all, even if he was a commander, he wasn't ready for this yet.

"Pathetic." Akainu grumbled, rolling his eyes when Thatch pushed himself off the ground, picking up his sword that had flew just inches from his body. The marine looked a hell of a lot better that the two commanders; just supporting a small cut on his left arm where Thatch had gotten a lucky shot and a slight bruise on the side of his face when Ace had hit him with Haki (his flames weren't really helping in the situation since Akainu is magma). "Whitebeard's crew is lacking the strength they once held, though I would say that the old man has been getting weaker with each passing day."

"Shut up! Don't insult Oyaji!" Ace shouted eyes narrowed. Fire raced along his shoulders as if it were a testament of his anger. Thatch wanted to shout at him that this wasn't the time for his fire to get out of hand; that he needed to focus on his attacks rather than words, but knew it was useless. Thatch knew that he held just the same amount of anger that Ace had.

"Hm," Akainu wasn't amused, raising his fist to the sky; he closed his eyes. Ace and Thatch shared a glance, knowing if he completed this attack; it'd be hard to survive. The sheer power radiating from the man was on a completely different level than before. The admiral's eyes snapped open, a triumphant smirk placed on his lips. " _Die_ pirates."

The magma bubbled, squirting everywhere and Thatch found himself _moving_. Glancing at the marine admiral now, he knew it would be futile. There was no way the fourth division commander would reach him in time.

Was this the end?

The man opened his mouth, turning and facing the sky. The man's fist was completely covered in lava now, making Thatch want to flinch but he didn't. With one leap, the commander surged for the marine, only missing him by mere centimeters. "Ryu—!"

"STAY AWAY FROM MY BROTHERS!" all of a sudden, Akainu wasn't there anymore. Thatch's eyes glanced up, catching the sight of the marine admiral being sent through several trees before stopping. A lone figure stood in the forest, the wind rustling his head as he glared at the man with so much hatred that Thatch was glad the boy was on their side.

Letting out a sigh of relief, he closed his eyes, just listening to the sounds around him. " _Luffy_ . . ."

* * *

" _ATTACK_!" Whitebeard's booming voice echoed throughout the forest as the marines stared in horror as a boy no older than sixteen sent their leader into a tree.

" _Oyaji_ …" Ace let out a happy cry and his siblings rushed around him.

The pirates took full advantage of the confusion, whooping and raising their swords, letting out fierce battle cries. They chopped down marines, one after another, yet more always seemed to fill the empty space. It was like a never-ending cycle of life and death.

"Ace!" He looked up from his position against the tree to see Luffy jogging over to him, fresh white bandages on his arms. The boy held out his hand, helping the older to his feet. Ace grinned, wiping the blood from the side of his mouth and shaking his head fondly. "Sorry it took so long. We had to track you down because you weren't in the town anymore."

Ace shook his head. "We drove him out into the forest so we wouldn't hurt the townspeople."

Luffy frowned at him, clearly miffed, though Ace doubted it was because of the war that was raging around them. "There aren't any people in town. It was like they all disappeared; we didn't see anyone while searching for you."

Ace sighed, slouching his shoulders a bit. This day just kept getting worse and worse. "Trap?"

"Trap." Luffy agreed.

" _Wonderful_." Ace punched a marine away when he tried to attack the fire-user while Luffy just laughed like it was the best thing in the world. With a flick of the wrist and a little fire, Ace launched himself into the fray, taking out any marines that he could touch or get his fire on. He made sure to stick close to Luffy, not wanting the boy to get more hurt than he already was. The man glanced at the bandages that were no doubt covering up the burns that he'd got earlier.

_It's your fault!_ A voice screamed in his mind, making him want to shout at it to just shut up because this wasn't the _time_.

The battle that was slowly becoming an all-out war and right now all he wanted to do was protect his family. Protect his _little brother_.

A loud roar and several screams caused Ace to glance to his left. He temporarily paused in his attack to make sense of what was happening. A pillar of magma engulfed several of his crewmates, ending their lives almost instantaneously. The pirates around their dead growled as a figure rose from the ashes like a demon.

"That _hurt_ , brat." Akainu's harsh gaze landed on the youngest commander. Luffy glared back at him, malice clearly visible in the younger's eyes.

The admiral tore his eyes away from Luffy and glared at Whitebeard with the same expression. Akainu stood tall and strong as nearby marines flocked to him like a beacon.

"I've come to eliminate the son of Dragon and Gol D. Roger!" He announced, his voice carrying through the whole forest.

_No!_ Ace screamed in his head, eyes wide. His stomach seemed to be doing flips inside of his body and his head didn't feel much better. Nononono _nononono_ — He barley registered the fact that Luffy was glancing in his direction, worry evident on his face. Ace ignored the boy for the time being, knowing that Marco, Thatch, Luffy and Oyaji were the only ones that knew his darkest secret.

Whispers broke through the forest, both pirates and marines glancing at each other in confusion. They knew about Luffy's father, but had no clue that the son of Gol D. Roger was aboard the ship.

Whitebeard narrowed his eyes along with the commanders. Ace closed his eyes when he heard Whitebeard growl, something that he hadn't heard in years. After all, it took a lot to get the man mad.

"You might know them as your 17th commander, Mugiwara no Luffy and your 2nd division commander, Hiken no Ace!" Akainu shouted and it felt like the world that Ace had tried so hard to build came crashing down with a single sentence. Hundreds of eyes turned to him and Luffy; pirates and marines wore the same, shocked expressions.

"Whitebeard!" Akainu shouted again, drawing the attention back to him. "The blood of two demons runs deep within your ship! You've taken in the son of your enemy! They're—"

" _I KNOW_!" Whitebeard roared across the field, raising his weapon of choice and sending it slamming back on the ground, causing shockwaves that even Ace had trouble finding his balance. Anger practically radiated off of the man in waves and his eyes turned dark. "But you have no right to badmouth them! They're my _sons_! _A father's sin doesn't carry on to his children!"_

There was silence on the field was almost tangible. Then the Whitebeard pirates raised their weapons and roared their agreement for Ace and Luffy were their _brothers_! It didn't matter who their fathers are; they were the sons of Whitebeard!

"Oyaji. _Everyone_ ," Ace whispered, holding a hand up to his mouth as tears gathered in his eyes. The giant man lumbered toward the admiral, intent on taking the man's life. Luffy, not really understanding what was going on continued to take out marines at supersonic speed, knocking the men unconscious before they could even turn.

Akainu looked at everyone on the field with disgust clearly evident on his face. He lunged at Whitebeard, "Then you are a moron, Whitebeard!"

Whitebeard simply raised his weapon, eyes filled with hatred and rage. The older man threw the marine to the ground like he was a simple doll, raising his weapon back up and slamming it down only inches from the marine's face.

"I should kill you right here and now." The giant man ignored when Akainu scrambled to his feet, an angry scowl across his face. "But for people like you, your pride is more important than your life, correct? Then we shall show you a humiliating defeat."

* * *

" _Shit_ , Luffy." Ace growled, punching another marine across the wet grass. They'd been pushed back away from everyone else when the marines thought it would be a great idea to abandon the fights they were in and attack the two commanders instead. To Ace, it was just annoying, but he couldn't afford to let his guard down. These were still high ranking marines; a mistake could end his life.

He had seen the look in Akainu's eyes. He'd seen the hatred and the rage that flared around him every time he attacked Oyaji. It was clear by his body language that killing Whitebeard wasn't what he was really here for. What he was really here for was—Ace grimaced, flexing his muscles and shaking his head to rid himself of those thoughts and, instead, focused on keeping an eye out for Luffy who was still fighting beside him.

There was no doubt that this was going to be in the news, though, the idea still made Ace's stomach flip. Having his worst secret revealed to the world? Having everyone who he ever knew look at him with a completely new image? All he was going to do was stand in his old man's shadow. He was no longer Hiken no Ace, Whitebeard's second commander and wanted for his devastating reputation and impressive bounty. No, he was the son of Gol D. Roger; wanted for the 'evil' blood in his veins and the fact that his so-called daddy _happened_ to be the last Pirate King.

He peered over at Luffy again, his eyes softening. Luffy . . . Well, Luffy was different. Luffy didn't care about his dad; didn't care to even learn who the man was. Luffy was still Luffy even though his father happened to be someone that was hated by the world.

Ace just wished he could be like that.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Ace focused on the battle in front of him; dodging and swerving between the marines, making his way over to Luffy. He jumped up in the air, over the confused marines and landed so his back now faced Luffy's back.

"This isn't going too well." he noted.

"No," Luffy agreed with him, rolling his shoulder and sending out another punch. "We need to try and get back to the others. They'd probably be worried about now."

"Yeah, well . . ." Ace glanced at the marines in front of them, looking like a giant ocean of blue and white. _Honestly._ How many marines can they fit on a ship? He would think that it would take hundreds of ships to fit this many marines yet they only came on about two or three. "I think that's easier said than done."

Some cries of happiness from the marines could be heard throughout the forest. The marines that were just attacking the two commanders back off, opening a line for a lone figure to approach them. Ace's blood ran cold.

"My, my. This makes things easier."

"Akainu." Luffy spat out, unconsciously taking a step back. Ace simply narrowed his eyes even further when Akainu waved off the nearby marines, sending them back the way they came. The marines hurried to obey, running off and leaving the three alone in just a few short minutes.

"That's better," Akainu said, cracking his knuckles and walking forward. "It was difficult to get away from that captain of yours but I managed. The old man's going senile."

"Don't talk about Oyaji like that," Luffy snarled.

The man took a step closer and both Luffy and Ace growled at him, shifting so their postures were ready to attack at any moment. Ace could feel his fire licking right below his skin, ready to explode in an instant. "You _bastard_."

"You have no right to talk, Gol D. Ace." Akainu replied smoothly. He seemed to take joy in the slight flinch when Ace understood what he was implying. "I doubt that the Whitebeard Pirates would accept you since they now know the blood that runs in your veins. I've heard the rumors that they already know of your heritage, Mugiwara, so I cannot see your future. It won't matter, though, since I'm going to kill you both right here and right now, anyways."

"Like hell!" Luffy suddenly shouted, jumping up in the air and preparing to send a punch towards Akainu's figure. The marine simply sidestepped the attack with an uninterested look on his face and grabbed the hand that had stretched, throwing the boy over his shoulder and slamming him onto the ground.

"I expected more, Mugiwara." The marine stated, nonchalantly.

"Bastard." Luffy growled out, positioning himself so he could glare at the man. He then used his hand and propelled himself upward, landing gracefully on the balls of his feet a few yards away.

Using the marine's distraction to his advantage, Ace sprinted forward, letting out a war cry. Fire surrounded his fist as he made contact with the man's shoulder, sending him stumbling back a few steps. Akainu hissed, sending an angry scowl at the fire user. Ace couldn't help but smirk back, lifting up his fist as if he were daring the man to come back for another injury.

"Not bad," The marine grudgingly admitted, dusting his Hawaiian shirt off. "You both have potential to become a real threat to the government but you're too inexperienced now to make a difference."

Luffy huffed at that and Ace couldn't help but agree. They might've been relatively young, but that didn't mean they were inexperienced. Luffy's been a pirate his whole life and Ace has been one even longer than that! They've had plenty of experience on this giant sea.

The marine turned slightly, his left hand shifting into magma. "Now, are you ready to finish this, pirates?"

* * *

"Marco!" Thatch called across the field, running towards the phoenix with a frantic look on his face.

"What?" Marco's voice came out rather snappy, though the bird couldn't be bothered with his tone at the moment. He simply watched the fourth division commander regain his breath, trying to say something but failing miserably.

Thatch gasped for some more air, blood leaking out the side of his mouth along with several other injuries that littered around his body. "Ace and Luffy—!" He was cut off by a cough. "They're gone! I haven't seen them anywhere!"

Marco raised his eyebrows. They were on a battlefield, surrounded by hundreds of marines. It didn't surprise the phoenix that Thatch couldn't find the boys. Though, Marco had to admit that he was worried about Ace was handling the situation. The fire-user's most guarded secret was revealed; one that he had promised Marco that he'd rather die than have to live in another person's shadow. "So?"

"So?" Thatch repeated, looking shocked for a second before shaking his head. "Akainu's gone as well! He slipped away when the marines started to gang up on Oyaji."

Marco gritted his teeth, clearly annoyed with the whole situation. "Damn bastard. You think he's going after them?"

"No doubt that he already has a plan set up." Thatch responded.

"Great." Marco sighed, shifting his arms into wings. "I'm going to go find them. Stay here, alright?"

"What?!" The man looked outraged for a second. "No way, Marco! If you're going, then I'm going too!"

"You need to help everyone fight down here!" Marco said, narrowing his eyes at the man.

"They're fine." Thatch said, crossing his arms stubbornly. "Oyaji's still here and I doubt that the marines are going to let him go anywhere."

"Damn it." Marco sighed before reluctantly nodding his head. "Check the surrounding areas on foot. I'm going to see if I can see anything from the sky."

"Gotcha." Thatch grinned as he turned around before pausing and looking back. "And Marco? Be careful, I don't want to have to organize your funeral."

Marco gladly returned the grin. "Same goes for you, Thatch. I'm not going to be the one dragging your dead ass back up from hell."

* * *

"Out of breath already?" Akainu questioned, rolling his eyes. "I've barely even started messing with you two. You would think that the sons of two famous criminals would put up a better fight."

" _Shut up_!" Ace roared, fire erupting around them, startling Luffy. Ace paid the boy no mind at the moment, his attention on Akainu and Akainu only. The magma man sent him a confident smirk, something that Ace easily returned with a heated glare. " _That man_ has nothing to do with this!"

"Or does he?" Akainu started to circle the boys, putting both more on edge than they already were. Ace snarled at him, ready to attack but did not move from his spot in front of Luffy. "Your family is dying because of _you._ Your family is being hunted down because of _you._ It's a wonder that Whitebeard accepted you after he found out, don't you think, Ace?"

Ace wanted to scream at him that _wasn't_ what he was thinking and that Whitebeard said that the blood in his mattered just about as much as the color of someone's hair, but found he couldn't.

_Your family is dying because of_ you.

_No._ Ace shook his head, eyes wide. No, they couldn't die, could they? They were still fighting—they weren't fighting for him, right? There was no way that they'd do that. No way.

_Because of_ you.

"Ace, watch out!" Luffy's warning cry caused him to snap out of his trance, jumping to the side just as Akainu flew past. He landed with a thud on the ground a few meters away, quickly scampering to his feet as Akainu tried to attack him once again.

The marine growled at the fire-user. "I thought I had you. If it wasn't for the son of Dragon, you'd be dead by now, Gol D. Ace."

"Leave Ace _alone_!" A fist came out of nowhere, slamming into the side of the marine's face and sending him sprawling. Luffy appeared in front of him not a second later, glaring at the man with his dark brown eyes.

He looked horrible; covered from head to toe in bruises, cuts and burns. The bandages that were once a pure white were now stained red along with the rest of his clothing. The boy was shaking slightly and Ace wondered how he kept himself standing. After all, out of the two of them, Luffy had taken the most damage.

_How much more until he broke?_

Akainu spat out blood, sitting up and rubbing the side of his face. He pushed himself up, coughing for a second. "How annoying. You're getting to be a real pain in the ass, Mugiwara. Time for you to go."

Ace didn't even see the man move. All he knew was that one minute Luffy was standing in front of him, tall and strong and the next, he's been sent across the field, crying out in pain and slamming into a large tree. His body slumped to the ground and instead of just jumping back up again like he would normally, he did not move.

" _Lu_ —!" Ace's eyes widened in horror, taking a step towards his brother. Even from the distance, the fire-user could see the puddle of blood that was slowly condensing under Luffy's body. " _Fuck_!"

"Good riddance." The marine said, not caring in the slightest. He didn't seem to notice how Ace paid him no mind, continuing to stare at the boy who he'd practically raised and cared for as long as he remembered.

_Your family is dying because of you._

A hand found his mouth as he shook his head. No _. No._ Luffy couldn't be dead. Luffy couldn't die from something like that; he'd be fine, right? He just needs to rest for a moment and he'll be back up in no time, fighting with just as much vigor as before.

Without even realizing it, Ace felt his legs _moving._ He didn't even know why. Didn't know how, but he knew that if he didn't get to Luffy _right now_ then everything would be gone.

_Everything._

A foot appeared in front of his, hitting his face and sending him flying _away_ from his little brother who he'd been so desperately trying to reach. He skidded on the dirt, rolling a little before his body came to an abrupt stop when his back hit the tree.

Ace didn't feel any pain. Only the numbness that was sent through his body; he'd never felt so _empty._ So _alone._

_It's your fault._

And he wanted to scream. To tell the small voice inside of his head to just _shut up_ because he didn't want to hear it. He didn't want to admit that it just _might_ be true.

_Worthless._

"I don't think so, Hiken." Akainu said, standing over him with a smug look on his face.

The fire-user pushed himself off the ground for what felt like the hundredth time, spitting out the coppery taste in his mouth. He growled at the marine, letting the fire on his shoulders appear. "Get out of my way, Sakazuki."

"No." The marine said cracking his knuckles. "Hiken, your brother is _dead._ "

_"What?"_

Ace could feel himself being picked up off the ground by his neck and forced to look into the eyes of a man that Ace hated more than anything in the world. The very person who had taken Ace's entire world and crushed it with just a few words.

"Your brother is dead." The admiral repeated, smirking victoriously. "The blood of Dragon is gone and so is the threat that Mugiwara once posed. There is _nothing_ someone like _you_ can do about it."

_I don't have a family._ The small, infant-like voice of Luffy echoed through Ace's head. _You'd be my family?_

"Stop." Ace screwed his eyes shut, breathing heavily. Tears were in the corners of his eyes but he wouldn't let them fall. There was no way that he'd give this sadist son of a bitch the joy of knowing that he'd hurt him in the worst way possible.

_Ace! Did you beat the monster that you promised to beat?_ Welcomed child-like laughter filled Ace's mind, causing the fire user to weakly shake his head. Luffy was gone. Luffy was _gone_.

_Shanks saved me and we made a promise. He gave me his straw-hat to take care of until we completed that promise!_

_Ace, did you see?! I got my first wanted poster!_

Ace opened his eyes, immediately meeting the dark eyes of the marine admiral. The man snorted, a dark glare on his face as he squeezed Ace's neck, jostling the man around a bit. "Given up, have you?"

_Ace is my big brother and big brother will always protect me!_

"Stop." Ace's voice was weak as he slowly moved his hands up to grasp the thick limbs around his neck. Akainu had him pinned up against a tree so he couldn't move, not that he really wanted to move anyway. He coughed, getting some blood in the admiral's face.

"It's a pity, really." Akainu said. "We only knew about Mugiwara because he was on _your_ crew. Otherwise, we wouldn't have dug up his past. Do you understand, Hiken? We wouldn't have known about him. He wouldn't be dead."

" _Stop."_

"We might even kill Whitebeard while were at it! And if not now, then in the next few weeks while he's still weakened. I don't want to dirty my hands with such a filthy pirate. Not that you're much better, though."

" _Stop it."_

"I can see the newspaper headlines tomorrow; 'Son of Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Dragon finally get the justice they deserve!' It'll be a great relief to the world knowing that Roger's bloodline is dead. Dragon's was just an extra. His life didn't matter to begin with."

_THIS PLACE ISN'T HELL!_

" _STOP IT!"_ Ace finally shouted, snapping open his eyes and glaring at the marine as he unconsciously released a large burst of Conqueror's Haki. The force sent Akainu flying back a few feet, crashing into a nearby tree.

Ace stared at his hands, eyes wide and slightly uneasy at the power that he had displayed but soon he remembered about Luffy and rushed over to the boy, dropping to his knees as soon as he got close to his small body.

" _Luffy_ ," Ace whispered, shock lacing his words. His hands hovered over the body of his little brother, unsure if he could touch him. God his little brother looked _so bad._ Every inch of his body was covered in some type of wound. He was pale, unmoving. Ace choked down a sob.

A groan of pain brought Ace's attention back to the boy in front of him, his eyes widening even more.

"Luffy. _Luffy_." Ace's breathing was heavy and his voice was coming out in harsh pants but he couldn't believe it. Luffy was still _alive_ —!

" _Ace_." Came the desperate whisper from his little brother and even Ace had to strain his ears to hear it. He looked down to see the boy's eyes had opened, staring past Ace.

"What? Luffy, what is it?" Ace decided to hell with it and gently placed a hand on Luffy's shoulder, ignoring the wince that came from the small commander.

"Ace, _behind you_!"

"You damn pirate!" Akainu roared, aiming a magma fist at Ace's head. Ace blocked it, Haki covering his arms. He couldn't move; Luffy was behind him. If he moved, then Luffy was dead. Ace _absolutely_ couldn't let that happen.

The admiral jumped back, snarling. Ace stumbled a bit, then fell to his knees.

"My body… won't move…" Ace groaned. _God_ , he was in pain. Ace's head snapped up at the sound of someone approaching, meeting the harsh gaze of the admiral.

_And this was it,_ Ace thought as he struggled to get his body to move. To do _something. This was how he was going to die; at the hands of a sadist bastard because of his damn father._

The man readied his fist, shifting it into magma and Ace could only watch with a helpless expression. There was no hope for him—no hope for Luffy—no matter how much he wanted just to _run._ This was how they were going to die and there wasn't anything he could do about it.

"Goodbye, Hiken no Ace." Akainu said, his voice so cold and emotionless that Ace closed his eyes, turning his head away. He could feel the heat coming from the fist and prepared for impact, not that it would do much good.

But he never felt the pain. He never felt the heat.

The only thing he felt was the sense of horrible _wrongness—_

Ace's eyes opened with a snap, staring in horror as Luffy—his damn little brother who he loves so much—stood in front of him, a magma hand in his chest.

_No._

"LUFFY!" He could hear a shout from somewhere near here and saw Thatch approaching, wearing the same horrified expression that Ace himself was wearing but he couldn't pay attention to that right now. Not when Luffy—

The admiral pulled his hand out of Luffy's chest with a disgusted sneer. It looked like he was about to strike again, but was sent across the field by Thatch who had appeared in front of the two, protecting them with his sword. The admiral immediately took up the challenge, changing his attention to Thatch instead of the two brothers and took off after the fourth division commander.

Ace didn't care about that though. All he could see was his _little brother_ standing in front of him, a gapping hole through his _damn chest._ Luffy's legs seemed to give up on him, sending him falling to the ground with a quiet cry of pain. Ace caught the boy in his arms, gently cradling his head in his lap.

"Why?" this time Ace wasn't ashamed when the tears fell as he held his dying brother in his arms, stroking through his matted hair.

"'Cause it . . . it was better than seeing you die." Luffy croaked out, meeting Ace's gaze.

"You _idiot_." Ace whispered his own voice cracking. "You—you can't just _do_ something like that!"

"Sorry," even as he was dying, Luffy didn't sound sorry at all. "Ace."

"What?"

"Could—" Luffy was cut off by a wet sounding cough, wincing as blood poured from his mouth. "Could you tell everyone thank you?"

"Why, Luffy?" Ace _knew_ why but he wasn't about to admit it. No, Luffy couldn't die. There was no way his sun could just flicker out like that. _No._

"Tell them—tell than that I'm glad I didn't die alone. Thank you for finding me, Ace. For accepting me. For _loving_ me." Luffy closed his eyes, energy spent. His entire body went limp and Ace had to physically restrain himself from jerking away.

Was he—?

Ace's entire body felt numb, his grip slowly loosening until Luffy's body slipped out and hit the ground with a wet 'thud'. Blood pored around the two men and Ace felt as if he was going to scream because there was just no way _that Luffy_ —

Ace couldn't help the scream that tore through his throat. His little brother, gone. Right before his eyes…

_Shishishi, you guys are the best! I'm glad you found me! Thank you for making me your family!_

_Thank you for finding me, Ace._

Ace closed his eyes as the pain of his injuries caught up with him. He knew that he wasn't going to make it out of this one. He could feel his body falling backwards but couldn't bring himself to care.

Just before he felt himself black out, he saw Luffy standing in all of his glory, laughing without a care in the world.

But Luffy wasn't there. Luffy wasn't with him.

After all, this was hell; no matter how much he tried to convince himself otherwise.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is such an awful chapter skjfhsjkdfghd i apologize in advance.

Ace never expected to wake up and quite frankly, he wasn't sure that he wanted to.

Images flashed across his mind; the war, Thatch, Akainu, Luffy. _Fuck._ What the hell happened to Luffy? The last thing he remembered was Luffy, in his arms, dying. Was he really dead? His little brother was gone?

_I—I'm glad I didn't die alone._

_Damn it._

He felt the nice, warm sheets under him, trying to send him back to that blissfully ignorant sleep. Ace wanted to let out a frustrated growl, but no sound was heard. It was like he was floating in a black ocean of nothingness and damn it, he wanted out.

Voices whispered in his ears, though Ace couldn't make out what they were saying. It sounded as if he were underwater, all of his sense blurred together as one. It was annoying and at the same time, a little scary. Why couldn't he move? Why couldn't he wake up?

He felt his hands grip the sheets even tighter as he tried to open eyes. The voices around him grew quiet, though there were still little whispering sounds every once in a while. He felt a hand slide into his and gave him a comforting squeeze.

"Come on, Ace. You need to wake up." The voice was familiar. Really familiar, but Ace couldn't place his mind on who it belonged too. "Open your eyes."

And Ace did.

* * *

"Ace!" immediately the fire-user was tackled in a hug causing him to wince as a sharp pain shot up his spine. His head started to spin and all he could do was wait until the person (whoever it was) decided that he needed air to breathe.

"Thatch," another voice—the same one from before—said. His stern voice cutting through the air like a knife. The person that was holding him—Thatch—shifted above him, loosening his grip to give Ace enough space to breathe. "Let him go. You're probably hurting him, anyways."

"Oops." Thatch pulled away, but not before rustling Ace's hair and sending the fire-user a cocky smile. Ace blinked, looking around the white room that he recognized to be the infirmary of the _Moby Dick_. Marco was sitting calmly in a chair next to Ace's bed, sending the cook a glare. "Sorry, I got caught up in the moment."

"I noticed." Ace replied, his voice sounding weak and hoarse. Two simple words threw him into a coughing fit, making both Thatch and Marco jump up and rush to his side. He waved them off with his hand. Marco gave him a suspicious glance but turned around and grabbed something out of Ace's sight range.

A cold, glass cup full of water was handed to the fire-user and Ace drank it greedily, relishing the feeling of the cool liquid soothing his dry throat. Ace put the glass on the table next to him and rubbed his temples, feeling a bandage wrapped around his head.

He frowned, trying to remember why he was in the infirmary. Fuzzy images swam around his mind, but he really couldn't get anything out of them. "What happened?"

Marco frowned at him, trying to mask his worry though it was obvious. "You don't remember?"

Ace shook his head.

"We were attacked by Akainu and he cornered you—"

The memories rushed back and Ace grabbed his head, letting out a groan of pain. He closed his eyes trying to gain control of his mind again, but it wasn't working that well. Marco and Thatch were at his side in seconds, saying things that Ace couldn't understand. Akainu. Akainu was there. So was Luffy and—

Fuck _. Luffy._

What the hell happened? All Ace remembered was Luffy, covered in blood, talking complete gibberish about death and how he was going to die and Luffy _was not going to die_! . . . Right?

"Ace?!" The fire-user felt a hand on his shoulder and slowly opened his eyes, trying not to show the fear that was bubbling up inside of him. Luffy wasn't dead, he couldn't be. There was no way his little brother would die like that.

"Luffy . . . " Ace rasped out, trying to shake off the hand. He slowly opened his eyes, staring at the two men he's known for years. "Where's Luffy?"

Both men's expressions immediately turned somber and Marco even shook his head. Neither could look Ace in the eyes. Ace's features went blank. _Luffy?_

He was dead, wasn't he? After all, Ace watched him die. He even held the boy in his arms as he said his last words. It was naïve and stupid to think he was still alive after watching it happen.

And knowing that it was his entire fault.

"Ace," Marco said, still not looking the man in the eyes. The blonde shook his head, letting out a sigh and forcing himself to look up. Ace could see the stress and sadness that practically radiated off the man and mentally prepared himself for what Marco was about to say. "He's—Luffy's alive."

Ace's eyes widened and relief coursed through his veins. He was alive? _How?_ Because the last time Ace saw the boy, he was pretty sure he was dead. It would take more than a miracle to save him.

Though, Luffy was a miracle just by himself.

"But," Marco said, still looking somber. "He's in a coma, yoi."

" _What?"_ If Ace hadn't been so injured, he was sure that his fire would've exploded by now but he could barely sit up as he was, so using his devil fruit was a big no-no. His breath came out as uneven gasps and he struggled to control his feelings. _A coma?_ Ace didn't know what to think.

The fire-user wasn't a doctor by any means so he didn't _really_ know what a coma was, but he had heard stories that once a person falls into a coma, they don't wake up. Ace knew it was bad. Ace shut his eyes and shook his head a bit. He felt arms wrap around his body, sending bolt of pain up his spine, but he couldn't bring himself to care.

"Thatch and I found you two fighting Akainu. Luffy was already down by then, so we couldn't really do anything to help." Marco's voice didn't give away any emotion. "You passed out right as I got to you. Thatch pushed Akainu back enough so we could get you back to the ship and well . . . " The phoenix shrugged with a sigh. "Oyaji called everyone back to the ship and left the island as soon as we could. We waited outside the infirmary for hours, yoi. Oyaji was hurt badly as well, so he couldn't wait with us. Otherwise I think he would. Then the nurses came out, told us everything and we've been waiting for both of you to wake up since, yoi."

"How long have we been out?" Ace shook the person, who he assumed to be Thatch, off of his body in favor of leaning back onto the white sheets, taking his pillow and shoving it on his head as if he were trying to block out the world.

"Week and a half." Thatch answered before Marco had the chance. "The nurses though you wouldn't wake up for another week, minimum. Luffy, on the other hand, is a whole different story. The nurses have no clue when he's going to wake up, if at all."

Ace screamed into his pillow. Why Luffy? Luffy was _innocent_. Luffy didn't do _anything_ to deserve the fate that he was given! Why not him? He deserved _death._ Couldn't he at least take Luffy's place? Why does he get to survive while Luffy was slowly dying?

" _Damnit_." he muttered, his voice somewhat muffled by the pillow.

" _Ace_." He heard one of the two males in the room sigh. "This isn't your fault, yoi."

" _Shut up_!" Ace roared, throwing the pillow across the room. "Just _shut up_!" He stared at the ceiling, feeling disgusted with himself. "It _is_ my fault. This whole mess is my fault! Maybe if I had just died a long time ago this wouldn't have happened! It's my fault that Oyaji's hurt! My fault that everyone here was in danger! This _whole damn thing_ is my—"

" _You're_ the one that needs to shut up!" Ace suddenly felt a sharp pain explode on his cheek and it took a few second to register that Marco had _punched_ him. He was about to recoil but found he couldn't when he saw the two angry—no, _furious_ —expressions on his friend's faces. "Why the _hell_ would you say something like that? We're your family! You're _nakama!_ We don't care about your damn dad! It is _not_ your fault that Akainu attacked us! Damnit, Ace, we're pirates! It's an occupational hazard!"

"Marco . . ." Ace whispered, tears burning his eyes. He wouldn't let them fall, though. No, tears didn't help. Tears only made things worse.

"You asshole," Marco continued to snap at him like the mother hen he was. "Get out of this damn self-loathing state that you've managed to pull yourself into and listen! Others care about you and your wellbeing and although _you_ might think you're alone, you're not! We care about you, Ace! You're our little brother, yoi!"

Ace stared at the blonde, completely shocked. He knew the man had a temper, but he'd never been on the receiving end of it and, quite frankly, never thought he would. The fire-user now knew why even someone like _Oyaji_ would listen to him if this kind of lecture was given.

The blonde man in front of him sighed and went to pick up the pillow that Ace had thrown across the room.

Thatch watched him, whistling. "I haven't seen him that worked up in a long time." He sent the fire-user a grin. "You really pissed him off, Ace."

The pillow was thrown at his face before Marco turned and left the room, blue fire licking on his shoulders. Ace just sighed and shook his head, falling back onto the mattress and shoving the pillow on his face. "I figured."

Thatch chuckled, ruffling Ace's hair before turning to take his leave too. "Get some sleep. You'll heal faster."

Right before he left, Thatch tapped the wood. "You know everything that Marco said—well, it's true, Ace. This wasn't your fault. We decided to go to fight them and the consequences are on all of us, not just you. Don't go blaming yourself for stupid shit, alright?"

And with that, the door was shut, leaving Ace alone with his raging thoughts.

* * *

The memories were the worst part for Ace; they kept flashing through his mind, reminding him that he'd failed. How could Luffy call him a brother after everything was over? Would he wake up and still be the happy idiot like normal or would things . . change?

Ace hated change.

His hands gripped the white sheets as another memory assaulted his mind and his eyeballs darted underneath his eyelids.

_Sleep?_ Ace mentally scoffed. There was no way he's be able to sleep with all the different voices ringing in his head.

Yet, he still found himself falling into the peaceful melody and before he knew it, everything went slack and he was sucked into the dark abyss that eagerly greeted him.

And the memories seemed to follow.

* * *

_"Do you have any family looking after you?"_

_"No," The kid—Luffy— looked miserable like he was remembering a painful memory. "Alone."_

_Ace remembered the way Whitebeard practically lit up, shaking his head fondly. "Is that so? So no one is looking after you?"_

_"No," Came the same reply. "Alone."_

_Ace remembered how the giant man that he'd come to know as father smiled, ruffling the boy's hair while Luffy looked up, his eyes rather wide. "How would you like to join us? We could be you're family."_

_Surprisingly, Ace was the one to protest. "But Oyaji—!"_

_"Hush, brat." Whitebeard had commanded. "It's the boy's decision."_

_"Family?" The four-year-old almost sounded wistful. "I don't have a family."_

_"You could," Whitebeard had said boldly and Ace remembered the feeling of defiance when the gang had wanted to take a boy, no older than four, under their wing. "We could be your family."_

_"I want a family," Luffy said in a childish voice, looking up with big brown eyes. "You be my family?"_

_And Ace remembered the loud laughter that followed. "Of course, Luffy. We'll be your family. Always."_

* * *

_"Luffy's strong, Ace. You've got to remember that. Put a little trust into your brother, yeah?"_

_"I'm not going to die from something small like that!"_

_"Shishishi! Ace worried too much! I'll be fine!"_

_"I made a promise to Shanks! When I get older, I'm going to challenge him to a fight to show him how strong I've become! I'll definitely beat him! Won't I, Ace?!"_

_"Hey Ace, do you think you could tell me more about Sabo? He was so cool! I would've loved to meet him."_

_"Could—" Luffy was cut off by a wet sounding cough, wincing when he jarred his giant injury. "Could you tell everyone thank you?"_

_"Why, Luffy?" Ace knew why but he wasn't about to admit it. No, Luffy couldn't die. There was no way his sun could just flicker out like that. No._

_"Tell them—tell them that I'm glad I didn't die alone. Thank you for finding me, Ace. For accepting me. For loving me." Luffy closed his eyes, energy spent. His entire body went limp and Ace had to physically restrain himself from jerking away_. _He remembered the horror that had slowly spread through his veins as he held his little brother in his arms. Luffy looked so small, even with that smile on his face—so fragile. Almost like glass._

_And something in Ace_ broke _._

* * *

It had been almost three months now and no matter how much Ace refused to admit it, he was losing hope. He'd been released almost two months ago, quickly taking up his position in favor of getting everything back up and running. Ace had noticed the wary stares that he sometimes got from lesser crewmates and he tried not to let it get to him, but there was always that small voice in the back of his head that kept yelling that they'd never trust him; that change was inevitable.

Luffy had yet to wake up or even move for that matter. As soon as Ace was released from the infirmary, he'd gone straight to the place that they'd kept the 17th division commander locked up and just sat next to him, having a one-sided conversation for hours on end. Ace knew that the longer someone was in a coma, the less likely it was for them to ever wake up but every time he looked at Luffy's slumbering face, he couldn't help but let a small spark of hope flare to life.

Luffy honestly hadn't been doing well; for the first month, he'd been constantly switching from stable to unstable in a matter of minutes. He'd gone under cardiac arrest almost three times along with several other medical conditions that Ace never bothered to learn. The boy had been hooked up to several IVs, along with a breathing mask just in case his body decided that it no longer wanted to work.

It hurt everyone to see the once happy, lively idiot confined to the bed, unable to do anything but it hit Ace, Marco and Thatch the hardest. They'd been there since the beginning, watching him grow up into the man he was now.

Ace sighed, giving the said boy's hand a reassuring squeeze. It wasn't like Luffy could feel it in the state he was now, but it still brought comfort to Ace knowing that he was still there, right by his side. The fire-user shook his head, trying to block out the beeping of the random machines scattered across the room and the deep breathing from the breathing mask over Luffy's face.

Ace leaned his head back, closing his eyes but not letting go of his little brother's hand. It was hard on all of them. Normally, Luffy would be everywhere at once, bouncing around the deck like a rubber ball or picking fights with the newer members of the crew. Seeing him confined in an infirmary, unable to move, to do _anything,_ hurt.

And Ace didn't mean physical pain. No, he'd much prefer outer wounds compared to the heavy feeling in his heart.

_This wasn't your fault, Ace. We decided to go to fight them and the consequences are on all of us, not just you. Don't go blaming yourself for stupid shit, all right?_

But no matter what words were said, Ace knew it was _still_ his fault. Maybe, just maybe, if he hadn't been born in the first place, none of this would've happened. Luffy would be up and running, Marco would be more stress-free and everyone else wouldn't have to worry about the constant marine attacks. It'd be better for everyone, right?

Ace sighed once again. It wasn't like he could change the past; all he could do is help the future. Maybe one day soon, Luffy would wake up and everything would go back to normal. The marines could continue to go after them for simply being pirates, he'd gain the trust back from his nakama, and Luffy would be up and running around, demanding food like the big idiot he was.

How naïve.

It would never go back to the way it was, and Ace wasn't quite sure he liked the new routine. Everything seemed darker somehow, like the light was fading away and as much as Ace hated to admit it, he hated the dark. After finding some friends, finding _his_ nakama, he didn't want to go back to being that lonely little 10-year-old with no one to trust.

"—don't know," a voice said right outside the door, sounding rather somber. Ace cracked open an eye, glancing at the door before sighing and pushing himself up. He stumbled over to the door, putting his ear onto the wooden frame.

"We don't like it either, Commander Marco," a female voice—Ace recognized it to be one of the nurses. "The whole ordeal it hurts all of us. We've known him since he was just a little boy."

"Well—" Marco's voice tried to cut through, but was interrupted by some shushing sounds.

There was a saddened sigh as another nurse spoke up. "We know that it's really hard on you, but it's quite obvious that he's not going to get better any time soon. He crashed really hard last night. We're running out of time and resources. There only so much the machines can do and well, without the machines he'd die. We think it's time to let him go. He's in so much _pain,_ Commander. He's not healing like he should."

Ace couldn't stand this anymore. He yanked on the handle of the door, throwing it open and startling some of the people outside. He eyes were narrowed dangerously and he spoke up, "Let _who_ go?"

"Commander Ace!" the nurses —all five of them—yelped, quite surprised by his intrusion. The head doctor just sighed at the sight of him. Ace ignored them and chose to turn his gaze to Marco, surprised when he saw the beginnings of tears in his eyes.

"Let who go?" Ace repeated, his eyes filled with a dangerous fire. His question was directed at the group, but he only wanted answers from Marco. The others didn't matter.

A dead weight was settling in his stomach and although Ace had an idea on just who they were talking about, he refused to admit it. There was no way they'd do something like that . . . . Just no way. After all, Whitebeard Pirates didn't abandon their nakama.

One of the nurses behind him let out a small squeaking noise. "Well, uh, you see—"

"Ace." The doctor swiftly interrupted, her eyes narrowed in the light. If Ace had been paying attention, he would've noticed the stress lines all around her face and the way she was as stiff as a board. "We think it's time that we let Luffy go."

_"What?"_

"Please understand, Commander Ace!" one of the nurses tried to plead with him, tears in her own eyes. "Luffy's been in a coma for around four months now and hasn't gotten much better. He's in a lot of pain right now and there's nothing we can do to help him! We can't just keep forcing him to live because we want him too." She took a deep breath and shook her head numbly. "W-we think that it's time to pull the plug. That way he won't have to suffer anymore."

Ace saw red. "You can't just give up on him like that!" He snarled, snapping his head around to face the nurses, instead of Marco who now refused to look him in the eye. Fire licked his shoulders, burning some of the bandages that held his recent wounds together. How _dare_ they. How could they even _think_ of doing something like that? "Not when—"

_It's my fault. All my fault._

"Ace," Marco's voice was tight, full with all the emotion that he'd bottled up inside. Ace couldn't think about the blonde right now; after all, _he_ wasn't the one that was about to— _going to_ —die.

"He _never_ gave up." Ace continued, closing his eyes and trying to focus on keeping his breathing normal. He would _not_ hyperventilate. " _Ever._ Even when the situation was completely hopeless and there was no way to win he _stayed_. He _stayed_ so he could save his nakama! His _family_!"

"Ace," Marco tried again, this time putting a hand on his shoulder and giving a hard squeeze.

Ace heard nothing.

"Do you know what he once said?" The fire was back again, this time more dangerous than ever. "He said that _being alone was worse than being hurt._ If you kill him—not only will he be alone—but also we'll _never_ see him again. _Ever!_ He'll be gone. _Forever."_

"Ace, please." Marco's choked on his words. "Please _stop."_

" _No."_ Ace responded, eyes still closed. Tears were forming beneath the lids but Ace refused to let them fall. Tears wouldn't help; they never do. He can't cry right now. Not when so many were watching him.

"Commander Ace," one of the nursed tried to approach him, hands behind her back. "We know how you feel, but we think it's for the best."

"A week." Ace took a deep breath, shaking his head. Inside he was screaming at himself to get a lid on his emotions but found it hard. After all, the nurses wanted to, basically, _kill_ Luffy. 'Take away his suffering'. What a bunch of bull. "Give him a week."

The nursed glanced at each other, giving silent signs that only they could understand before the doctor stepped up and nodded. "A week. It'll give everyone a chance to say goodbye." And with that, they left, leaving both Ace and Marco in an uncomfortable silence.

Ace didn't know what to do; he was confused and hurting in the worst way possible. The fire-user doubted that Marco was in a much better condition, seeing as he'd raised the boy just as much, if not, even more than Ace had. Luffy was more like a son to them than a brother and it hurt watching him slowly fade away, leaving nothing but memories.

Ace closed his eyes, his back facing away from his best friend. What could he do? He got Luffy a week, but seeing as he hasn't woken up for months, what good would a week do?

The fire-user's eyes snapped open when he felt himself being turned around, two strong arms wrapping around his shoulder and pulling him into a tight hug. Ace was stunned for a second before he hugged the blonde back. The emotions that he'd been feeling for the past four months suddenly swelled up, and for the first time in a very long time, Ace felt tears streaming down his face.

He didn't question the growing wetness on his shoulder.

Because even if it was a just a week, they were going to do everything in their power to save their little brother.

* * *

_"Going to deliver Bink's sake_

_Following the sea breeze_

_Riding on the waves_

_Far across the salty depths_

_The merry evening sun_

_Painting circles in the sky_

_As the birds sing_."

"You've got a week, buddy," Ace whispered to the boy that lay beside him, completely unaware of the conflict that was raging around the ship. As expected, almost none of the crew liked to idea of 'pulling the plug' and even Oyaji protested, but the nurses seemed to know how to deal with this and quickly changed the favor, albeit reluctantly. Several of the crewmembers had stopped by to say their final goodbyes before walking out in tears, especially those who were closer to Luffy.

Ace refused to let another tear slip since the incident with Marco and thankfully, the blonde never brought up the subject. It was hard enough as it is without thinking that Luffy basically had a grim reaper hanging over his body, waiting for them to finally finish him off.

"Everyone's so worried," The fire-user continued, giving the hand a squeeze. "But they still have hope. They still think that you can wake up in a week. After all, you're a miracle by yourself. Surely you can get yourself out of this mess, right Luffy?"

No answer greeted him, not that he expected one in the first place.

* * *

_"Farewell to the harbor_

_To my old hometown_

_Lets all sing out with a Don_

_As the ship sets sail_

_Waves of gold and silver_

_Dissolve to salty spray_

_As we all set sail to_

_The ends of the sea"_

"Six days left," Ace muttered, closing his eyes and laying his head on Luffy's bed. He tried to shoo away the dark thought in his mind, but they always seemed to be right around the corner, attacking him while he's down. "Why'd you do it?"

Images of Akainu flashed through his mind and he shook his head. "Damn it, Luffy. You're not a hero, you're a pirate! Next time—" His voice broke. "Next time don't go saving my ass. It's not worth it anyways."

* * *

_"Going to deliver Bink's sake_

_We are pirates_

_Sailing through the sea_

_The waves are our pillows_

_The ship, our roost_

_Flying the proud skull_

_On our flags and our sails."_

"Five," Ace sighed, burring his head into his hands. Thatch, who had decided that he didn't want Ace to visit alone today, put a hand on his shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Five days left, Luffy. Do you think you could open your eyes and show them that you wouldn't give up that easily?"

A chair was pulled up next to his. "Or at least some sign that your still there." Thatch said, slipping his hand on the boy's face, giving him a sad smile.

Ace sighed, shaking his head. "We miss you, Lu."

* * *

_"Now comes a storm_

_Through the far-off sky_

_Now the waves are dancing_

_Beat upon the drums_

_If you lose your nerve_

_This breath could be your last_

_But if you just hold on_

_The morning sun will rise."_

"It's been about three days since the nurses decided to give you a week." Ace hummed, shaking his head and giving a small smile to the boy in bed. "So then it would be day four, I guess." He groaned, burying his head into the sheets. "I don't know how much more of this I can take."

Luffy didn't even stir, he just continued to lie there, completely oblivious to the outside word.

"Why are you always in trouble?" Ace whispered. "Why are you always protecting people? So willing to throw your own life away. Luffy, damnit, if you die, I'm going to _kill_ you."

* * *

_"Going to deliver Bink's sake_

_Today and tomorrow_

_Our dreams through the night_

_Waving our goodbyes_

_We'll never meet again_

_But don't look so down_

_For at night the moon will rise."_

"Three days, now." Marco muttered, glancing at the sulking fire-user. His sharp gaze turned soft when he gazed at the small boy in the bed, looking so innocent and helpless that it made Marco's chest swell.

He tried not to let it get to him, he really did. He knew that if he were sad, Luffy'd be upset as well, so he tried to just continue on even though the burden was killing him. He'd said _yes_ to those damn nurses. He told them that they could do whatever the needed.

He was regretting his choice now.

" _Damnit_ , Luffy." He whispered low enough so the fire-user couldn't hear him. "Just wake up already."

* * *

_"Going to deliver Bink's sake_

_Today and tomorrow_

_Our dreams through the night_

_Waving our goodbyes_

_We'll never meet again_

_But don't look so down_

_For at night the moon will rise."_

"It's sad, isn't it?" Thatch said as Ace, Marco and him gathered in the white infirmary, checking up on Luffy like usual. Ace sat by the bed, holding the boy's hand in his, listening to the agonizingly slow beeping of the heart monitor.

"Yeah," Marco muttered, reaching a hand out and ruffling the boy's hair like he would normally do, only this time there was no energetic remark or whine. It was utterly silent. "Only two days left. This week is going by too fast."

Ace placed his chin on Luffy's hand, closing his eyes. Just two more days? It didn't seem like a day had passed, let alone almost a week. "Yeah." he whispered. "Yeah, it is."

"I doubt Luffy would want us to be sulking like this," Thatch said, shaking his head at the memories. "But I can't seem to help myself. You'd think that we'd get use to not having him bouncing around the deck, acting like a total idiot."

"After living with him for almost seventeen years, it's hard to get used to the silence." Ace shook his, allowing a small, sad smile to wash across his face. "It seems almost surreal without the constant yelling and smashing of random objects."

"Don't forget the cries of food," Thatch added, chuckling wetly and Ace knew the man was trying to hold back tears. "And the fact that he eats all the food in the whole damn kitchen."

Ace and Marco both chuckled, though Ace quickly stopped and sighed. "He could even out-eat me if he really wanted to."

"Yeah," Thatch's watery smile faded a bit. "It's hard not to cook the extra hundred plates or so. I keep forgetting every time I'm in the kitchen. I guess I'm better at it now, but . . . It just feels like something missing."

Ace hummed in acknowledgment, cracking open an eye so he could stare at his little brother's slumbering face. "Luffy, we're all waiting for that miracle."

_"Going to deliver Bink's sake_   
_Let's all sing it with a Don_   
_A song of the waves_   
_Doesn't matter who you are_   
_Someday you'll just be bones_   
_Never-ending, ever wandering_   
_Our funny traveling tale."_

* * *

**Mugiwara dead! Dragon's Blood Line Finally Extinguished!**

Ace scrunched up his nose after reading the morning newspaper's headline. He could already tell that it wasn't something that he wanted to read, but forced himself to scan the page. There was a picture of Luffy in the corner and damn, he really did look dead. Too bad he was alive, for another day at least.

_Well_ , he thought rather bitterly, _they sure took their damn time getting this thing out._

"Ace!" Thatch voice came out of nowhere and Ace barley had time to register the face before his best friend was leaning over him, looking at the newspaper with open curiosity. "Wht'cha readin— _oh_."

The newspaper was promptly ripped out of Ace's hands before he could protest, and Ace glared. Thatch was frowning now, reading over the small article that depicted the battle with Akainu. "Whitebeard severely injured? Mugiwara dead? Hiken presumed dead? What the hell is this bullshit?"

"I don't know," Ace said, lying back on the table. "Its just part of the morning newspaper. I didn't get a chance to read it."

"Well," Thatch scrunched up his nose much like Ace had earlier and crumpled up the paper, making a shot into the trashcan. "You don't want to. It's full of bullshit."

Ace sent the man a dull glare before shaking his head. "Alright, if you say so." He stood up from his bench, his features slowly shutting down. His breath hitched. "You want to get Marco? I was going to say my last goodbyes to Luffy before—well, you know."

Thatch shot him a somber look and nodded, disappearing out of the gallery in a few seconds. Ace decided that he'd wait for them in the infirmary instead of staying in this room, getting pity glances from everyone else. After a while it really became annoying and Ace wasn't enjoying the attention at all. If anything, he was starting to loathe being in the spotlight.

He quickly walked out of the room and into the empty hallways, heading down the route that he often used. He only passed two or three people, who told him hello, but Ace ignored all of them. It wasn't worth stopping for a chat when his little brother was going to die tonight—by his own family as well.

Ace hadn't even realized that he's arrived until he took a deep breath and shook his head, clearing his thoughts. He was just here to say goodbye, not get all emotional. He'd have to be strong and show everyone that he could still move on. After all, that's what Luffy would want.

He pushed open the door, peeking inside to see Marco and Thatch waiting for him, somber smiles on their faces. Ace stood up a bit straighter and walked in the room, shutting the door quietly behind him. Luffy was still where he's been for the past four months, in the bed and still quite dead to the world.

Ace nodded to Marco and Thatch, quietly taking a seat right next to the comatose boy and slipping his hand into his. He sighed, well aware that Thatch and Marco had pulled chairs over and were currently sitting next to him. Ace glanced at the boy, shaking his head, a sad gleam appearing in his eyes. "Luffy, why are you so much trouble?"

Thatch reached over and stroked Luffy's hair. "We-we're going to miss you, buddy." They all ignored how his voice cracked, full of emotion. Ace might've promised himself that he wasn't going to cry anymore, but Thatch had no such qualms.

"Take care of yourself, brat." Marco muttered, closing his eyes with a sigh.

"Luffy . . ." Ace whispered, squeezing the boy's hand. "Damn it, you asshole. You're being _selfish_ —can't you think of everyone's reactions if you'd die? They—We'd all be devastated. You're stupid, clumsy, and an idiot but we love you! S-so just wake up, already! You promised, didn't you? You promised Shanks and that other girl—" Ace broke off, wracking through his brain to try and remember the name. "Robin. Yeah, Robin. Are you just going to abandon them like that?! They trusted you, Luffy! Come on, wake up!" His voice cracked and tears burned his eyes, but like so many times before, Ace refused to let them fall. "Just . . Wake up, Luffy. _Please wake up."_

Ace barley felt it at first, after all, it was just a tiny thump against his palm but then it happened again, and again, and again and Ace finally snapped out of it and looked down to see the hand that was holding Luffy's slowly move on it's own.

Thatch and Marco apparently saw it too and broke out into wide grins.

"That little shit," Ace said, wiping tears from his eyes as he stood up.

Thatch stood up as well, taking Luffy's hand. Gently, Marco squeezed it and almost jumped when he felt a small squeeze back. The cook didn't seem to notice the happy tears that were rolling down his cheeks and neither did Marco.

"Well, I'll be damned." Thatch whispered, a happy grin coming across his features. He quickly wiped the tears away, only for them to be replaced by new ones. "I knew the kid was too stubborn to die. That's just how D's are."

Marco bent in closer to the boy, unable to stop his own tears. "Luffy, can you hear me?" There was a groan from the previously lifeless body, making Marco grin even wider. "Good. We need you to open you eyes though, can you do that?"

All he got in response was another groan.

"Come on, Lu." Ace whispered, ignoring the encouragement from Marco and Thatch. The young commander's body shifted for a second before his eyes started to twitch and he slowly opened them, only to flinch from the light and shut them once again.

He tried to open his eyes once again, this time succeeding and glancing around the small infirmary room. The boy looked at Ace, confusion washing over his features. The machines hooked up to his body started beeping wildly.

"Asce?" He muttered, his voice coming out as a croak. They could barley hear him through the breathing mask he wore. Luffy shifted in bed so he could look at the other side, trying to focus on the other two people in the room. "S'athc? M'co?"

"We're right here, Luffy." Thatch grinned, ruffling the boy's hair once again and before Ace knew what he was doing, he had already tackled the boy in a hug, ignoring the wince of pain from the younger. He could feel Thatch and Marco slowly join him, being much more mindful of Luffy's injuries.

"You _idiot_ ," Ace cried out.

His little brother was _alive_ and _awake,_ safely in the arms of the Whitebeard Pirates.

Then he remembered the newspaper that he'd stumbled upon earlier and he grinned.

_Mugiwara dead! Dragon's Bloodline Finally Extinguished!_

And all Ace wanted to do was laugh and tell the whole world, no, not quite yet.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS IS A BONUS CHAPTER. IT DOES NOT AFFECT THE 'CANON' OF THIS STORY
> 
> bonus chapters were really popular when I first started writing (you dont see them as often now). so since this is an old story, it has an old bonus chapter. this chapter has no impact on the rest of the story. you can read it like a fanfic of a fanfic kind of. 
> 
> this gets included bc i actually like this chapter bc i love time travel stuff ok bye

Ace hated this island.

He didn't know why, and had no good or definite reason either, but this island had been sending him bad vibes for the past hour and a half since they landed. The tall, dark trees that lined the edge of the forest made Ace's skin crawl and whenever a rustle from the bushes was heard, Ace practically jumped out of his socks. No matter what his pride was screaming at him; Ace did not want to go on this island. And if that meant sitting here like a little wuss while everyone else explored, he was perfectly fine with that.

He knew, however, that he had a hyper younger brother who would just drag him off anyway, in search of the 'new island adventure' or something like that. Marco would just follow behind; chuckling at his misfortune and Thatch would squeeze his way in, even if no one invited him. It was just a normal, everyday routine when they'd reach a new island and normally, Ace loved it.

This time, all he wanted to do was curl into a ball in his bed and wait until the ringing in his ears and the horrible feeling in his stomach just went away, never to come back again.

But as always, fated hated his sorry ass.

So when Luffy bounded up to him, grabbing his hand and dragging him forcefully off the side of the boat, sending him tumbling into the ground with a muffled 'oof!' while Marco and Luffy just jumped gracefully off the side, landing on their feet, grins on their faces, Ace didn't protest. He wanted to, wished that he could, but he couldn't. There was no way Luffy would just let him off because he didn't like an island. In fact, the small commander would probably just laugh at him and make sure to keep an even closer eye on him so he didn't dart off.

After all, you can't break a routine and get away with it.

* * *

"Luffy!" Ace called as the younger boy ran ahead, slowly disappearing from view. The fire-user started to jog, aware that Marco and Thatch were following close behind. "Luffy! Wait up!"

Luffy didn't seem to acknowledge them or even hear them. Instead, he just kept sprinting ahead, not once looking back. Ace gritted his teeth, annoyed at the fact that the younger wasn't paying them any mind. "Damn it, Luffy! Slow down!"

When they finally caught up to the boy, the first thing Ace noticed was the prominent frown that lined the boy's face as he looked at the forest in front of them. His entire posture was tense, as if waiting for an attack. It was almost like he could sense something that Ace couldn't.

"Luffy?" Thatch put a hand on the young commander's shoulder, looking at him with concerned eyes. "Hey, buddy. What's wrong?"

Luffy's only response was to flinch away from Thatch's hand, turning and looking at the commanders as if he didn't recognize them. It was frightening, to say the least, when Luffy looked up, fear lined up in his eyes. Ace wanted to shout, to grab onto the 16-year-old's shoulder as he turned and fled into the forest, disappearing from view.

"What the hell?" Ace whispered his eyes wide because in all those years he'd spent caring for the boy that had _never_ happened. Luffy never once looked at them like that. The only time that came close was back when they first met, but the fear was not the same.

It scared Ace. It honestly scared him.

What was happening to his little brother?

* * *

As confused as he was, Ace was not about to let Luffy go so easily. So, without much thought, he sprinted after the boy, ignoring the yells of his friends. The fire user didn't know why, but anger started to bubble up in the pit of his stomach. He wasn't mad at Luffy, no, he couldn't be mad at Luffy, but he _was_ mad at whatever the hell did this to his little brother.

He didn't mind when the branches would whip back as he pushed them out of the way, creating small scratches on his skin. He could've just turned to fire and have nothing affect him, but to be honestly, he never thought of the option. It was like his mind went blank, searching for one thing and one thing only.

That _thing_ happened to be his little brother.

"Ace!" His mind finally registered the fact that someone was calling him, begging for his attention. With a snarl, he spun around, eyes blazing. Marco and Thatch stood behind him, panting and making unhappy noises. "What the hell, yoi?"

"The better question would be, where are we?" Thatch said, shaking his head and dusting himself off. Ace paused; his glare lessening and he looked around, adopting a confused expression on his face.

Marco, noticing Ace's expression, sent the fire-user an agitated glare. "You got us lost."

Ace huffed defiantly. "I did not."

"Then where are we, yoi?"

Ace hummed, looking around at all the leaves and vines in the giant forest. "We're just mildly displaced."

Marco growled at him and Ace assumed that his answer was not as creative as he thought it was. "That makes no sense, you ass."

Ace held up his hands in defense. It wasn't like he really _cared_ for where he was going in the first place—if they were lost right now, then there was no doubt that Luffy was lost, somewhere out in that unforgiving jungle.

Ace bit the inside of his lip, glancing around the clearing once again. Normally, he wouldn't be worried. After all, Luffy was strange. He's have his moments when he'd do something completely unexpected and random, surprising everyone. _However,_ that was not the case in this situation—or at least, Ace thought it wasn't. In all the years that he'd lived with Luffy, the boy had never _once_ looked at them with so much _hurt_ and _pain_ written all over his face. If they could just . . . just find Luffy again, then everything would be fine. They'd go back to the ship, leave the island and never come back again.

"I know, it's just—" Whatever he had to say was cut off when he saw a flash of red through the trees, gaining his attention. He could just make out the figure right before it emerged from the trees. " _Luffy_?"

The male stared at them like a deer caught in a headlight. He looked . . . different, but Ace wasn't paying much attention to the details right now. Marco and That's head snapped up, greeting the boy's arrival with a wide-eyed stare. Before Ace knew what he was doing, he rushed to his little brother, embracing him into a hug. "Damn it, you idiot. Don't run off like that!"

He ignored the way Luffy stiffened under his touch as if he half-expected Ace to just go right through him. " _A-Ace_?" The smaller male croaked out, as if something terrible had happened to him.

Ace pulled away, making sure to keep a firm hold on his shoulders just in case the male decided to bolt again. He looked the boy over for injuries, starting at his face. He was covered in small injures like cuts and bruises, but there didn't seem to be any major damage for the most part on his face. Once he glanced at his chest, however, Ace's eyes widened and he immediately changed his mind.

"The scar . . ." He whispered and Luffy stiffened, trying to pull away from him. He raised his voice a bit, narrowing his eyes and meeting Luffy's eyes. "What the hell happened to you? Where were you? We just saw you a few minutes ago!"

Luffy just stared at him like he wasn't real. Apparently, the questions Ace gave him were having a hard time processing in his mind. "Umm—"

"Ace." Just as Ace was about to fire more questions at the confused boy, Marco cut him off, his tone hard and untrusting. "That isn't Luffy."

"What're you talking about?" Ace snapped, whirling around to face his nakama. "Of course it's Luffy! Who else could it be?"

The maybe-not Luffy interrupted everyone before they had a chance to form their words. He glanced at Ace, then at Thatch and Marco, his gaze sharp and his stance tense. "Who the hell are you guys?"

"Luffy—" Ace tried to say, but then Marco's words rushed into his head and he stopped his sentence short.

_That isn't Luffy._

Thatch drew his sword and pointed it at the not-Luffy-lookalike. His eyes had a dangerous glint to them that Ace had never seen before in the man's eyes. "Just _what_ have you done to our baby brother?"

None of them missed the flinch that the look-alike gave when Thatch had said 'baby brother'. He backed up a bit, but his gaze never left Thatch's. Something that reminded Ace of Luffy's determination reflected in his eyes and Ace really had to wonder if maybe this _was_ Luffy and Thatch and Marco were over reacting.

"What're you talking about?" The not-Luffy looked confused but there was still that hidden emotion in his eyes that Ace couldn't quite identify. It was like . . . It was like this person was hurting in more ways than one.

"You _know_ what we're talking about, you bastard!" Thatch snarled, taking a step forward like he was about to attack.

And without another word, the not-Luffy turned around and dissapeared.

* * *

It was painful.

Not physically, exactly, as Luffy's body had no wounds, but everything still ached. He felt his energy slowly draining away from him the further he got from the ship almost as if he were slowly drowning in the unforgiving ocean that haunted his nightmares all those years ago.

He didn't know exactly what got into him. One moment he was like he normally was, dragging Ace and everyone else off the ship and complaining that they were slow. To him, a new island was an _adventure!_ But here, on this island, it was different. _Something_ was different.

Luffy probably stared to feel it as soon as the tree line to the forest became visible, though it was no more than a speck in the horizon. He'd ignored it then, writing it off as him being hungry but, then, it started getting worse and worse so the point that everything just _hurt._

So when Thatch had reached out, trying to touch him, he freaked. He knew that there was hurt in all their eyes when he left . . . but he couldn't stay with them. He figured that if he found the mystery-thing that was hurting him, he'd just have to beat it up and then he'd be fine again. It was his battle this time, so he didn't want to get his brothers involved just in case that the mystery-thing hurt them too.

Luffy huffed, closing his eyes. Thinking about it wasn't going to help him; only action and more action. He hummed in approval, opening his eyes and taking off into a spring.

As he ran through the trees, he started to notice that the pain was going away. It was little things at first, like him punching an animal that tried to get in his way and feel no impact or the fact that whenever he moved, he'd feel cottony, not in the agonizing pain like before. And even then, the feeling was fading fast.

The young commander furrowed his eyebrows and was about to turn around and go find the ship again, figuring that he did, in fact, beat up the mystery-thing when suddenly, he wasn't running anymore.

Luffy barley registered that he's bumped into something—or someone—until he was sent flying back a few feet, landing with his back hitting a tree, and was satisfied to see that it _was_ a person and that person had suffered the same fate he had. He got up from the ground, about to apologize to the other person, but the words died out in his throat when the 'mystery-person' pushed himself off of the ground and faced him.

" . . . Me?" He tilted his head to side, clearly curious. After all, you didn't get to meet yourself every day, even if the Grand Line did a lot of crazy shit to them.

His other-self just gaped at him, apparently thinking something along the same lines. "You've got to be kidding."

Luffy just flashed his look-alike a grin, wandering over to him and offering a hand. "Shishishi! The New World's a really fun place!"

His other-self looked at the hand for a moment as if he were deciding whether or not to take it. Eventually, he sighed, looking rather subdued and grabbed the offering hand, pushing himself on his feet. "Yeah, it is."

Luffy laughed again, poking his counterpart in the cheek, looking at him with fascination and curiosity. His counterpart returned the look, a grin of his own coming to his face. "Nah, how old are you? You look a lot older than me!"

"I'm nineteen." His other-self answered, offering a grin. "You?"

Luffy huffed crossing his arms. "I'm only sixteen."

His other-self looked surprised. "And you're a pirate?" Luffy nodded his head, grinning. Of course he was a pirate! What else would he be? "That's weird. I didn't set out to become a pirate until I was seventeen."

"Weird," Luffy laughed, eyes twinkling. "How'd you get here? Is it the mystery-island?"

The other-Luffy bit the inside of his cheek, trying to think. It was obvious that he didn't know _exactly_ how he got there, but he did know that it had something to do with the island. "I dunno." He answered, shaking his head. "I just know that one moment I was with my crew and the next, I'm here. Robin might know though. She's _really_ smart. Like, _really, really_ smart."

"Crew?" Luffy blinked in confusion. "You have a crew?"

His other-self looked at him like he was stupid. "Well, yeah. I'm the captain."

"What about Oyaji?" he found himself saying. "Isn't he the captain?"

"Oyaji?" They started walking in the opposite direction that Luffy came in, towards what Luffy hoped was the ship. "Who's Oyaji?"

". . . Oyaji." Luffy said, thinking that would explain everything. "Umm, Whitebeard? He's our captain."

"What about becoming Pirate King?" Luffy didn't like the look that the other-Luffy was giving him. His other-self reached up, taking off his treasured straw hat and fiddling with the rims "You have Shanks' hat too, right?" Luffy's hand quickly found his own head and they stopped walking. "Didn't you promise him?"

"I promised Shanks that one day I'd beat him." Luffy informed the older male. "I didn't promise to become Pirate King. That's going to be Oyaji."

Luffy hummed as a silence evoked the two. It wasn't like it was awkward or tense or anything like that, it was just quiet, both boys lost in their thoughts and fears. Suddenly, Luffy's hand shot out, catching his other-self by surprise as he started to drag him forward, offering a large grin and laugh. "Come on! Ace and the others will really want to meet you!"

* * *

The second time Ace met the other-Luffy-look alike; it was just as strange as the first time. They'd first heard the noise, something that sounded like happy shouting and laughing. Ace had shared one look with Thatch and Marco before taking off in the direction of the noise because noise only meant one thing in a peaceful forest— Luffy.

And they did find Luffy. Two of them, in fact. Laughing about one stupid thing that one had said that, apparently, was really funny and sent both of them into pearls of laughter. Ace blinked once. Twice. Then, looked over at Marco, eyes wide. "Please tell me I'm not the only one seeing this."

"I don't know what to say to this situation," the blonde answered.

The other Luffy-look alike was the first to notice them, his gaze falling on Ace before that pain from before flashed through his eyes and his laughter died. His Luffy followed his gaze and upon seeing them, grinned brightly. He bounded over to them, dragging the still shocked (what the hell was he so shocked about?) Other-Luffy with him. His Luffy grabbed the other-Luffy's shoulders, pushing him out in front like he was showing him off. "Hey Ace! This is other-me. He's from another dimension or something, we haven't really figured out the details yet—But! He's a pirate and got his own crew! Isn't that cool?"

Another dimension? It seemed a little far-fetched to just believe something like that. But then again . . . there _was_ another version of his little brother standing _right in front of him._ That didn't mean that he couldn't be skeptical though.

As if sensing Ace's feeling, the other-Luffy turned to him, meeting his eyes for the first time and pulling on his cheek. Ace watched in fascination as it stretched to abnormal proportions.

He knew that there could _never_ be two devil fruit at a time in the world. Even if it was a devil fruit that allowed the complete copy of someone, that didn't mean shit for the devil fruit. They went by their own terms, unable to be copied or forcefully made again. So as much as Ace wanted to deny it, he couldn't deny the fact that there are _two_ Gomu-Gomu no Mi's in the world right now.

So, he came to the conclusion, apparently the other-Luffy was innocent from the start. Ace was starting to regret taking Thatch's side when they'd met him before, ready to attack. If he hadn't fled, then it wouldn't have been pretty. Ace made a noise in the back of his throat. "Where do you even find these people, Luffy?"

Luffy just giggled, letting his counterpart go in favor of jumping on Ace's back, sending the fire-user stumbling back a few feet. He just barely caught the look of—of _something_ that flashed on the other-Luffy's features, disappearing as soon as it appeared. But he still caught it and it had him wondering just what had this—this _person_ gone through.

"I guess we should report to Oyaji." Thatch stated, offering a grin to the newcomer. "Sorry 'bout before. Thought you'd abducted our Luffy or something," He paused. "You want to come back to the ship with us? We can help you get home if you want."

Other-Luffy blinked at him, offering a slight smile. "That'd be nice. I need to get back to my crew as fast as I can."

Thatch hummed in agreement, spinning on his heels and stared to walk to the ship. "I don't think it'd be pretty if the marines found out there were two of you now." After hearing a laugh of agreement from the Other-Luffy, Thatch turned around, offering a hand. "I'm Thatch by the way. The Pineapple Head is Marco." Luffy—from Ace's back—giggled, earning a playful whack from the said pineapple head. "And I think you already know Ace."

Almost immediately, Ace felt the piercing gaze on his back. "Yeah . . . I know Ace. He was my older brother." Ace didn't miss the past tense. "I haven't seen him in years."

The fire-user felt the way Luffy's hands tightened around his neck, a clear sign that he didn't exactly like the statement that was said. "You mean he doesn't visit you?"

There was a sad gleam in other-Luffy's eyes when he spoke again. "He would if he could, I bet. But even before . . . _that,_ it was hard to contact him. Ace has his own crew—you guys. At least that's still the same in our worlds. I left three years after he did and gathered up my own crew."

Marco glanced at the male out of the corner of his eye. "How old is the age difference between you two?" Ace was about to tell the man off for asking such a ridiculous question, but the words died in his throat when other-Luffy grinned.

"He's only three years older than me. I met him back when I was seven. Ace was really strong!" There was a sense of nostalgia in his voice. "He didn't really like me at first but then him 'n Sabo accepted me into their family. It was nice! I didn't really have a lot of friends in Fushia and there was no way I was going to say around with Dadan all day . . ." He trailed off at the end.

Ace sputtered for a second, clearly surprised. He was about to say something when the Luffy that was bouncing on his back, laughed. "Wow! Me 'n Ace's age difference is really big . . ." he poked Ace in the cheek. "Ace is old!"

"I'm not that old!" Ace said, defensively. Then he shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. "But that's not the point. You grew up in East Blue? With me and Sabo?"

Other-Luffy hummed. "Yeah! It was really nice until . . ." He paused, looking down at his hands. "Well, until Sabo died, I guess. Ace was really upset—like, _really, really_ upset. Dadan had to tie him to a tree just so he won't go and kill the Celestial Dragons." Yes. Ace remembered everything clearly; it took Dadan a month for her to trust him enough that he wouldn't go out and set the whole damn blaze ablaze once again. This time, instead of the slums, it would be High Town.

"Celestial Dragons?" Thatch muttered. "Bastards."

Other-Luffy hummed in agreement but then shook his head. "That was a long time ago, though. I've got my nakama now and I got stronger so I don't have to lose anyone again. I'll protect them."

Ace offered a grin. "Of course you will." His eyes flashed ahead and he caught sight of the outline of the ship, standing there in all of its glory. Ace felt the smile on his lips grow even more and he laughed. "So, how about we go meet Oyaji?"

* * *

The crew, as they figured, freaked out when two Luffy's walked onto the deck. Of course, some just freaked out because _one_ walks to the deck and bring all the chaos that he possibly can, but _two_? It was a walking disaster that was waiting to happen.

So after they'd calmed everyone down (well, Marco did, the other four just laughed), Marco started to explain to them what they thought happened to Oyaji and anyone else who bothered to wonder _why_ there was more than one brat on the ship, while one of the two Luffy's butting in from time to time to make sound effects or other stupid statements. They'd also started to notice the differences between the two Luffy's; the new one, who they'd dubbed as 'Other-Luffy' for the time being, was more laid back and mature. He kept sending glances in Ace's direction as if something . . . bad had happened between the two of them.

To be honest, it kind of worried Ace.

He knew that he'd never hurt Luffy, no matter what happened. Well, at least not intentionally, but that didn't mean anything about his counterpart. What if . . . What if it was his counterpart that gave Other-Luffy his scar? It was a burn mark after all, a bad one at that. A simple accident wouldn't cause an injury on that scale. And the way he kept looking over at him, like it was physically hurting him just to be around Ace.

It unnerved him.

Ace wasn't used to receiving a look like that from Luffy, whether from another world or not. All that he'd ever known was looks of love and joy, always curious and always thirsty for adventure. This look of pain, like he'd seen something that he shouldn't . . . it bothered Ace more than anything.

And he was determined to find out what had hurt his little brother, from another dimension or not.

* * *

They ended up searching the island all day for any signs of how Other-Luffy got there and how he could get back. Unfortunately for both parties, they came up with nothing so Other-Luffy was forced to stay the night on the ship. The Whitebeard Pirates didn't mind too much, considering that it _was_ Luffy, but at the same time Ace could tell that Thatch was starting to regret not stocking up on the last island. No matter what the differences between the two Luffy's were, their appetite never changed.

It was soon after that when everyone started heading back to his or her beds to turn in for the night. Luffy had bounced to his division's sleeping quarters, a giant smile on his face as he hollered a cheerful 'goodnight' to everyone. The Other-Luffy had been put in a spare room for the time being, but he didn't seem to mind too much. He did mention that it wouldn't be like sleeping with his nakama, but otherwise didn't say a thing.

So Ace thought it was safe to say he was surprised when he went out on deck for his watch duty, only to find Other-Luffy leaning over the rail, watching the ocean as it crashed against the ship's hull.

Slowly, Ace approached the boy as if not to startle him. Of course, it didn't work when Ace put a hand on his shoulder and the Other-Luffy flinched, spinning around and facing Ace, his eyes wide. The same hurt expression flashed on his face before it disappeared and everything returned to normal. "Oh. It's you, Ace." He forced a grin. "You surprised me!"

"Sorry," Ace said, leaning against the railing. He glanced at Other-Luffy for a second. "Is it okay if I sit here?"

After seeing Luffy's nod, he grinned, sliding down to the wooden floor. He was happy to see that Other-Luffy slid down with him, looking up at the stars. "What'cha thinking about?"

"My nakama." Luffy answered simply, though his words sounded chocked.

That, Ace decided, was it. Grabbing the boy's shoulders, he spun him around so black met grey and Ace narrowed his eyes. "Tell me."

Other-Luffy would know exactly what he was talking about.

"Ace…" Other-Luffy looked up, gazing at the stars. He had a small, almost weak smile on his lips that definitely looked out of place. It looked like he was lost in a sea of memories. "You _died_."

And all those differences suddenly made sense.

Ace sputtered for a second, his eyes wide. He expected some sort of betrayal, something that happened to normal pirates all the time. But for him to _die?_ No, he wasn't worried about the whole dying part. He _was_ worried about the fact that he probably made a stupid ass decision and he _left Luffy alone._

Other-Luffy glanced up at him, that same, painful look on his face. "I was surprised when you suddenly appeared in the forest. Thought I was dreaming for a second. But then you guys tried to attack me and well . . . I didn't know what to do. My dead older brother suddenly shows up, claiming that he's been looking for me so I panicked."

"How—" Ace swallowed, closing his eyes. "How did I die?"

Other-Luffy hummed. "Protecting me."

It was silent for a second as Ace processed the worlds in his mind. Then he snorted, because, really, what else could he do? "Sounds like something I'd do."

"Yeah," Other-Luffy trailed off, a small smile appearing on his face. "You 'n Sabo were always protecting me when I was little. From Grey Terminal to the animals in the jungle, you guys were really strong! I promised Shanks that I'd become Pirate King, so I was always trying to catch up with you, but I never once beat you guys in a fight." He paused, his smile fading a bit. "Then Sabo died. It was sad, but we eventually were forced to get over it and set out to become pirates when we were seventeen. Ace left three years earlier 'cause he was older than me so I was left on the island to train. Then I left, gathered my crew and now, here I am." He glanced over at Ace. "What about you? Other-me said that he'd grown up here."

Ace chuckled at that. "Marco, Thatch and I found Lu when he was four, alone on an island. Found out a couple years back that he was thrown overboard on a ship when Garp tried to take him away from his dad. Don't really know how he survived though . . He's basically been with us since he could remember, always causing trouble, getting into things that he shouldn't . . . He's a real pain in the ass, but he's our little brother. Oyaji made him a commander only a little while ago; he's got his own division now! 'Course, he still can't do the paperwork or reports to save his life, but he's getting better."

"That sounds nice. Having a family like that," other-Luffy grinned. "The only thing close I had to a family is Dadan 'n Garp and they're not really a good family."

"But you've got your nakama." Ace argued, looking over at the boy. "Aren't they your family?"

"My nakama are more than my family." Other-Luffy looked distant, like he was thinking about all the good times they shared. "They're special."

"Oh, really?" Ace grinned. "Tell me about them."

And with a smile on his face, Other-Luffy did.

* * *

"Damn, Ace." Izo said as the two little monsters ran around the deck, playing a rubber version of 'tag'. "I can't see how you put up with this all morning."

Ace just laughed as he watched his Luffy crash, headfirst into Oyaji's knee, closely followed by his counterpart. They both bounced back up, laughing, and quickly resuming their game, running around Jozu in circles. "They were bothering Thatch most of the morning. Other-Luffy just about had a fit when he found out Thatch was a cook."

Izo snorted. "At least they're still in character." He paused. "You'd think brat number two would be more worried about finding a way to get home, not hopping around the deck."

Ace just shrugged, an easy going grin on his face. "He's Luffy. The brat can't be worried about anything important to save his life."

The cross-dresser chuckled. "True, true."

* * *

"Oyaji!" A very familiar voice rang through the deck, causing anyone that heard to sigh and shake his or her heads. Whitebeard chuckled, putting down his Sake cup on the ground next to his chair just in time for a warm body to crash into him and a unique laugh to echo around deck. "Story?"

Whitebeard patted Luffy's small head, looking over the boy to see his counterpart standing in front of him, eyebrow raised. He laughed again and patted the spot on his other thigh, a clear sign that he wanted the other to join him. Other-Luffy broke out into his normal grin and quickly clambered up his body, settling right next to his counterpart.

"Let's see now . . ." Whitebeard racked his memories, not wanting to upset the two young brats. "Have I ever told you about the time . . ."

After all, what type of father would he be if he couldn't even watch after the youngest?

* * *

"There's this one bastard that I've hated for a while now," other-Luffy said, talking to Ace and Luffy on deck. They were sitting in a small circle, exchanging stories and adventures that they'd had over the years. "He's a piece of _shit_. He's part of the reason you d—" The Other-Luffy stopped abruptly and shook his head. Ace didn't have to hear the whole word to know what he was talking about.

_He died._

It was still sore on his mind, knowing that he basically left everyone. From what Other-Luffy had told him, he was still a part of this crew and was still division commander. So that meant that not only had his counterpart left his little brother, but also adoptive family. It made Ace sick to think about.

"Actually," other-Luffy seemed to be racking his brain, thinking about something. "I think he came from this crew."

"What?" Ace questioned, thinking that he hadn't heard the boy right.

"Yeah," other-Luffy nodded, like he was getting surer of his statement. "Ace told me that someone betrayed them and killed a friend of his. I don't know all the details, but Ace was really upset. He went to hunt down the bastard, but he underestimated his strength and, well, you know the rest."

"The rest?" Luffy still didn't know about Ace's counterpart's fate and Ace planned to keep it that way. He didn't need his brother to suddenly have an irrational fear of him dying.

"Nothing, Lu." Ace ruffled the boy's hair, but he was still obviously upset. He glanced up, meeting Other-Luffy in the eyes. "Who the hell is this guy?"

Other-Luffy blinked. "I don't know the name that he went by when he was a Whitebeard Pirate, but he goes by Blackbeard now. He's an asshole."

The epithet sounded familiar, but Ace couldn't quite place where it came from. He would no doubt start to search, though. If there was one thing the Whitebeard's didn't take kindly, it was betrayal. "I'll keep an eye out for him."

"Thanks." Other-Luffy tried to give him a fake grin. "I don't want you guys to experience the same pain that we have. "

Ace would make sure of that.

* * *

"You guys ready?" Marco hollered to the small group that had gathered in order to help Other-Luffy find his way home. They'd found some ruins on the farther side of the island, near the place that the two Luffy's had ran into each other. They decided that this was probably their best lead and set out as soon as they could.

Both Luffys laughed at Marco, while Ace and Thatch gave a thumbs up. Haruta, for her part, just rolled her eyes and Jozu didn't do anything so Ace assumed that Marco took that as a sign that he was ready as well. "Alright, let's go!"

The two rubber-idiots immediately rushed ahead of everyone, talking about meat and adventure. Ace wasn't really keen of listening into their conversation, but did but in whenever something interesting was said.

Other-Luffy seemed to be telling Luffy some ridiculous thing again. "You know that woman in snow countries have smooth skin, right?"

"Why would you say that?" Haruta decided to but in, a small grin on her face.

Other-Luffy blinked at her like she was stupid. "Isn't it obvious? Sanji said when it's really cold, you rub your skin like this." He rubbed his skin as if he were trying to gather warmth. "That's how everyone's skin is so smooth."

"I don't think that's the way it works." Jozu said, a lax smile plastered over his features.

"Eh?" Luffy looked confused. "Why not? It makes sense!"

"Yeah!" His counterpart echoed.

"You two are idiots." Thatch said, sliding into the conversation as well. Marco, for his part, just chuckled and Ace honestly didn't know whether he should laugh or shake his head at how pathetic they were being right now.

"What kind of moron told you that in the first place?" Haruta asked, shaking her head.

Other-Luffy grinned at her. "Sanji. He's my nakama. He's a cook too! His food is _really_ good. Everything he makes is delicious!"

Luffy laughed. "I really want to meet him!"

"You just want to taste his food." Jozu accused the boy.

* * *

It was about mid-afternoon when they got to the ruins, standing tall and proud even if they were crumpling to the ground. It really was a beautiful sight to behold, especially for an archeologist or someone along those lines. The buildings were made out of this rock that glittered in the sun like gold. Ancient carvings were scrawled out on every single flat surface and vines snaked around everything.

"Robin would like this." Other-Luffy commented and upon the look he received, he elaborated. "She's likes old stuff like this."

"You sound like you have an interesting crew." Marco commented, looking around at the marking on the walls. "We should probably split up. Look for anything that might give us clues to what happened."

"But you're the only one who can read what's on the stone." Haruta pointed out. "We can read that. How're we supposed to find clues?"

"Just look around for pictures." Marco suggested and upon seeing Other-Luffy's curious look, he sighed. "I know a lot of old languages, yoi. This is one that I recognize."

"Is this the same language that's on a poneglyph?" Marco was surprised that the boy even knew what that was.

"No," he answered. "I can't read that language. I haven't met anyone who can read the language in a long time."

"Robin can read it," other-Luffy said, smiling. "It's her dream."

Luffy laughed. "I have a friend named Robin that's like that too! Except she couldn't join us yet 'cause she said she had to complete her dream. But! She said that she'd join us if I could find her again."

"As fascinating as this is," Jozu said. "We should probably look around before it gets dark."

Luffy immediately grabbed his counterpart, dragging him in the opposite direction as everyone else. "We're going on an adventure!" He called out.

Marco sighed, running his hands through his hair. Really, he should expect something like this to happen. They were _Luffy_ after all.

* * *

"Hey . . ." other-Luffy trailed off, looking in the direction of a rather large pillar that stuck up from the ground only a few hundred meters from the group that they'd been with before. There was something weird about it . . . like it was drawing them towards it. "Do you feel that?"

Luffy hummed, walking towards the pillar. "Yeah. You think that this is what brought you here?"

"I think so," other-Luffy answered, though he didn't sound quite sure. One moment he was exploring an island similar to this, the next he finds himself in front of his supposedly not-dead brother. He wasn't paying attention to details then.

Luffy broke out into a giant grin, grabbing his hand and pulling him along. "Then, let's go check it out!"

Other-Luffy gladly returned the grin. "Sure!"

The closer they got to the pillar, the warier they became. Their smiles were soon gone, replaced by thin lines. This pillar . . . there was definitely something wrong about it. While everything in these ruins seemed to be dead or nonliving, the pillar almost seemed to be _alive._ Like it was the center of the forest; it's roots.

"This is it." other-Luffy said, one hundred percent sure by now. "This is the reason I'm here."

Luffy just blinked. "Then should you go up and touch it or something?" he paused, a grin spreading on his face. "Maybe it'll give up meat."

Other-Luffy snickered. "I hope so! But I'm going to touch it, just in case."

So he carefully snuck up to the pillar and placed his hands on the smooth surface. He could feel the ridges of the words below his fingers, comforting him for some odd reason. It was quiet for a second and Other-Luffy was worried for a second that it didn't work when everything suddenly went black.

* * *

Ace didn't expect Luffy to return so soon and he _certainly_ didn't expect him to come back alone. So when his Luffy barreled through the trees, grinning like an idiot, _alone,_ he knew something was up.

"Hey, Lu." The teen bounded right up to him, a happy smile on his face. "Where's your twin?"

Luffy hummed for a second. "Well, he found this _really_ weird pillar and it felt really weird too, so other-me went up and touched it and he disappeared." Well, that was simple. Ace could only hope that other-Luffy was sent back to his world and not stuck in yet another dimension. Well, at least it wouldn't be their problem anymore.

"Oi!" Haruta suddenly jogged into sigh, followed by the rest of the group. "What happened? We heard a big racket so we came." She glanced at Luffy and noticed something was missing. "Hey, Luf, where's your twin?"

"Shishishi!" Luffy laughed. "Ace said the same thing. We found this pillar and other-me touched it and _poof_! He disappeared."

"Did this pillar happen to feel like it was alive?" Marco asked suddenly, blue eyes narrowed. "And did it have a different kind of writing on it, not like the writing found on the stones in the ruins?"

Luffy giggled again, his arms going around Ace's neck and Ace found himself giving out a free piggy-back ride. "I dunno 'bout the writing because I didn't pay attention to that but it was really big! It felt weird, too."

Marco sighed in relief. "That's good, yoi. That pillar is, according to the people who lived here before, the pillar of the roots. It connects everything on this island together, including other worlds. The other-you just happened to get caught up in it by accident."

"Really?" Luffy grinned. "That's so cool! So if I go touch it, then can I go to his world or something?"

"You're not going to touch it, Luffy." Jozu said, shaking his head. "We've had enough other-world crap for the time being. We don't want to have to hunt you down."

It was silent for a while until Thatch decided to break it. "Well . . ." he ventured, a grin setting on his face. "Since this problem is resolved, who wants to party?"

* * *

It was almost one in the morning when Teach boarded the Moby Dick again, after a day out in the woods. Bodies were everywhere out on deck, probably passed out from alcohol. Only a few were still up and even less were in the right state of mind.

Teach raised an eyebrow. He was only gone a day, what reason did they have to party? Knowing the Whitebeard Pirates, it was probably for something stupid, but it still bothered him knowing that something happened without him being there to watch.

Teach quickly spotted Thatch coming his way and he grinned, offering a small wave in greeting. Once Thatch got to him, the brunette threw an arm around his shoulder and laughed, obviously drunk. "Hey ya, Teach! Where the hell were you, you bastard?"

"Just exploring the island, Commander Thatch." He answered. "Did I miss something important?"

"Hell yeah!" The fourth division commander slurred. "There was this thing and umm. . . ." He trailed off, muttering illegible things. "I'm going to bed now."

Thatch dropped to the ground, happily asleep.

Above him, Teach grinned. "Good night, then, Commander Thatch."


	18. Chapter 18

There was no light.

Shadows were everywhere, like a black hole; endless and deadly. They danced around him, jeered at him without making a sound. They grinned, laughing as the sound bounced off the walls, reverberating throughout the whole space of complete _nothingness._

There was no one around, no one to help. The darkness was suffocating, slowly grabbing the bits of his sanity and yanking it away, dragging it down like a monster from hell. Even if he screamed, begged, cried, there was no one there to save him from this endless land of suffering.

And it scared Luffy.

He didn't know how he got here, didn't know _why._ The last thing he remembered was waking up with the blazing smiles of his family above him, cheering for some odd reason. They'd told him about the attack, about his coma, how much worry it caused them.

He'd felt bad, he really did, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. He remembered Ace sitting next to him, chatting away with this little smile on his face like he'd gotten just what he'd wished for on his birthday. He remembered the sudden feeling of drowsiness, then a nurse leaning over and pushing him back on his bed, urging him to sleep.

After that, everything faded.

Normally, he would assume something like this was a dream, but there wasn't any meat. No meat meant that this couldn't be just some simple dream. Maybe he was dead? He _was_ a pirate, after all. He'd heard Marines scream at him thousands of times that no matter what they did, pirates were 'destined to fall back in the pits of hell that they'd crawled up from', and so maybe this was, in fact, hell. It would make a lot of sense; eternal torture.

But Luffy never remembered _dying._ He thought that for sure he'd remember something like that. He'd always imagined that he'd die in a great battle, fighting till the last breath to protect his nakama. To protect his family.

To die in his sleep, well, it was a little disappointing to say the least.

This was assuming, of course, that he _was_ dead in the first place.

Luffy sighed, his breathing coming out as a white wisp and then dissipating. He ran his hand through his hair and spun on his heels, trying to get a bearing on where he was. His directional sense might not have been _great,_ but it was enough that he could get around if needed. Here, however, there was absolutely _nothing._

He debated weather or not to take a step forward, not knowing if it was ground beneath him or just darkness but after a while, the boy rolled his eyes and decided that it was now or never. So he took a step forward.

It was a mistake.

Immediately he found himself falling into a dark abyss, unable to see the bottom. He let out a startled yelp, his eyes widening as he spun around, desperately trying to right himself so he wouldn't land on something important. He wasn't particularly worried, though; he was rubber, after all. He just didn't know what to expect once he hit the ground. Monsters? Marines? His nakama? Meat?

He landed seconds later, his back slamming onto the cold, hard ground. He bit back a cry as pain erupted throughout his body. Breathing heavily, he closed his eyes and just lay there for a minute, trying to calm himself down. He'd be expecting a lot of things, but pain was not quite one of them. It was a fall, not that far down, so his devil fruit ability should've worked, shouldn't have? He'd never remembered falling and actually being hurt.

Laughter echoed through the darkness, causing Luffy's eyes to snap open and immediately sit up, holding back a hiss of pain when it exploded in his back. The laughter, cold and heartless, continued, sending chills up Luffy's spine. It sounded familiar, but at the same time this was different; darker. Just where had he heard it before?

Something moved to his left and Luffy jumped to his feet. Injured or not, he wasn't going to just lie down without a fight. The last thing he'd want to do was _nothing._

The thing moved again, closer this time. It was like it was slowly cornering him, almost like a small animal. Luffy wasn't used to playing the part of the prey and sure as _hell_ didn't like it.

More laughter was heard, and the sound of footstep approaching had Luffy more on edge. Something large moved right in front of him, and Luffy let out an instinctive growl, fist ready. The figure was big, far bigger than himself but not as massive as Oyaji. It laughed, stopping only a few feet away. Luffy wanted to back up, but found his feet suck to the ground, almost like glue. He shot a desperate look around him, his instincts screaming at him to _get the hell away from there_ but there was no place to hide in this dark abyss.

Luffy glanced back at the figure, almost horrified to see that it was moving again. It walked towards him, slow and deliberate, knowing that Luffy was completely helpless. It squatted centimeters from his face so that Luffy could already smell its foul breath. Its mouth twitched and Luffy flinched away, afraid. However, he did not expect the blinding white smile, perfectly evil, to be the next thing he saw. "It's time, _mugiwara_."

* * *

Ace was on duty when he heard the cry and was up, running towards the infirmary before he himself understood what had happened. He knew exactly where he needed to go. After all, this wasn't the first time something like this had happened. It was a common occurrence.

He quietly pushed the infirmary door open, poking his head in. He couldn't see anything other than completely darkness. The sound of heavy breathing reached his ears and he cautiously squeezed his body through the door, whispering out, ". . . Luffy? You awake?"

"I'm awake." Luffy's voice answered back, sounding . . . different, almost.

"I'm going to turn the lights on, okay?" when there wasn't a reply, Ace sneaked in the room, his hand groping the wall, searching for that small white box. He flicked on the lights, letting the room be illuminated even in the dead of night.

Luffy flinched and with a hiss, pulled his covers over his head in a sad attempt to block out the glow. Ace cracked a small smile and shook his head at the pitiful attempt. He quietly shut the door behind him, hopeful not to wake any of his crewmates that lived in this wing. He reached the bed, plopping down right beside his little brother and almost pushed him off the bed when the ass didn't move to make room for him.

Shaking his head slightly, Ace took a seat next to the bed so he could _try_ and comfort Luffy. The only problem was Luffy _hated_ being like this; absolutely dependent on everyone with almost no energy to do anything for himself. He was weak and helpless and everyone knew it. So providing comfort wasn't very easy for the stubborn teenager.

The fire-user sighed. "Bad dream?"

Luffy quietly hummed, letting out a sigh as his body relaxed a miniscule amount. "Yeah, I guess."

Ace reached out to rub the younger's back in a comforting matter, occasionally running his hands through the boy's hair. "We're going to land on the next island tomorrow."

"Its not like I can go anywhere." Luffy whined. Physical therapy was a bitch like that—Luffy wasn't recovering any time soon.

"I'll bring back souvenirs."

"You're laughing at me." Luffy complained with a huff.

"I'm not."

"Yes, you are!"

Ace quickly put a hand over his little brother's mouth, glancing around the room. "Shh! I'm not supposed to be in here, idiot. You're going to get me caught."

"Good."

"That's not good! I am trying to _help—_ "

Ace was quickly interrupted by Luffy. "Don't you have watch duty tonight?"

"I do."

"Then you should probably get back on deck before someone catches you." Ace groaned, tightening his hold on the boy. He didn't want to go yet—at least, not until he was sure Luffy was better. As if reading his brother's mind, Luffy made a small whining noise at the back of his throat. "I'm fine, Ace! You're being irrational, now."

"Says you." Ace shot back, but let his arms slide back to his sides and pushed off the bed. He glanced back at Luffy, one eyebrow raised. "Are you sure you're alright? Because I can get—"

_"Ace."_

"Okay, okay." Ace waved his hand up in the air, waking toward the door, only to pause while his fingers hovered over the light switch. "You sure you don't want to talk about it?"

Even from as far away Ace is, he could tell how uncomfortable Luffy was. Eventually, the commander shook his head and sighed. "Maybe someday but not right now… Night, Ace."

Ace echoed the sigh. "Goodnight, Luffy."

* * *

"I call _bullshit_ ," Shanks had declared—loudly—the moment Mihawk had showed him the latest newspaper. Even after numerous attempts of trying to convince the redheaded captain that maybe Luffy _had_ died; he still stood strong with unwavering determination. "Luffy has a promise to keep. Anchor wouldn't just give up like that."

"Yeah," one crewmember said. "But he was facing _Akainu._ That guy is overly sadistic and really damn strong. Even someone like Luffy would have trouble."

"The Whitebeards wouldn't let something like that happen." Shanks glared at the man, his arms crossed over his chest. He stood firm, his trusting. Even though they argued, the crew knew that there was nothing they could do to convince their captain otherwise.

"But, _sometimes_ , accidents—"

"We're going to call Whitebeard," Shanks declared, suddenly, pushing himself off the ground and brushing his pants off. "And I'm going to show you asses that I'm right. Anchor's not dead yet."

Benn frowned up at the redheaded man. "Captain, I'm not taking sides on this, but are you _sure_ you want to talk to Whitebeard? They might not take kindly to that after everything that's happened."

"Don't care," was the only reply he got. "We're calling. _Now."_

* * *

"Well, this is upsetting; don't you think, Eustass-ya?" Trafalgar Law looked up from the newspaper that he was reading, a sadistic grin set on his face. His ally didn't spare him a glance, completely set on tinkering with his metal object. "Eustass-ya, are you ignoring me? My, I'm hurt."

The brute only snarled. "Piss off, Demon Doctor. I have better things to do than listen to your stupid-ass voice."

"I prefer Surgeon of Death," Trafalgar's voice was smooth, almost cocky, and that goddamn smirk—! The man was driving Kidd close to insanity. "You don't even know what I was going to say."

"I don't care. Leave me alone."

"You need to have your attitude checked on." was the snippy reply. "Besides, don't you remember our little friend, Mugiwara?"

Law's smirk only grew when Kidd paused with his fiddling, looking up with an eyebrow raised. "The Whitebeard Commander?"

Law chuckled. "Yes, him." he tossed the paper at his ally. "Seems like it was a one time meeting."

"What're you talking . . . about? Oh." Kidd frowned at the headline, glaring at Law. "He's dead?"

Law heaved a dramatic sigh, leaning his face into his hand. "It's disappointing, really. I was looking forward to seeing him again but it looks like the marines got to him before we could."

Kidd's eyebrow twitched. " _You_. Before _you_ could. I want nothing to do with your sick mind."

"You're a very harsh man, Eustass-ya."

"Why won't you just _leave me alone_?!"

* * *

Robin was never one to believe in lies and the moment she saw _that_ newspaper, she knew it wasn't true. He'd _promised_ her that he'd come and find her. He couldn't be dead, not when he was the only thing that was keeping her alive.

She heard clumsy footsteps behind her but she didn't turn around to know who it was. It was just her, ah, 'boss', probably drunk again. He was a stupid man but had a good heart, though that just made it easy for Robin to make a living. As long as these strangers remained ignorant to whom she really was, then she would be fine.

"What you got thur, 'bin?" Yes, it was definitely her 'boss' and he was definitely drunk. If she hadn't been around him for a while, she would've found his speech very hard to understand, but she could decipher the drunken slur rather easily now.

"A newspaper," she replied, wiping all facial expressions off of her face.

" _Ohhhhh."_ his word seemed to drag on forever. "'S the un 'bout dem Whitebeard shits?"

"Yes." she replied, but that was all the information she was giving him.

"Don't believe that bullshit." her 'boss' informed her. "Whitebeard's 'ouldn't let a 'mannder go down without a fight. 'E brat's still alive."

She turned to look at him, letting confusion slip. "Do you know them?"

"Met 'em one before!" he cackled, walking towards the door that he entered. "Back when I 'ould walk ina straight line. Protective 'unch they are. You'd havfta have an army ta kill one of 'em. The boy is alive so quit worrin'. You'll scare off the customers."

She gave the man a small smile. "Thank you."

"Yea, yea. Get outta here and 'et back to work." he slammed the door shut, leaving Robin alone once again.

* * *

"Y'know I found a devil fruit today, Lu." Thatch grinned, ruffling the boy's hair. Luffy laughed, shaking Thatch's hand off and demanding an explanation since he wasn't allowed to go anywhere. "Back when we were exploring the island—it was a winter island, too! There's a whole bunch of snow on the ground— we found it just lying there, in the snow. It stuck out like a sore thumb. Purple and swirly. I'll have to show you it later since I don't have it with me."

"Are you going to eat it?" Luffy questioned, tilting his head to the side. "They taste gross."

"So, I've heard." Thatch laughed. "But I'm not sure. I dunno if I want to lose my ability to swim in case you decide to jump overboard again—" He ignored Luffy's pout. "Besides, we don't even know what it does yet. It could be something stupid, like rubber."

"Hey!" Luffy protested, seemingly offended. "Rubber's the best. I could kick your ass!"

"Yeah, yeah. I'm just teasing you." he chuckled when Luffy started pouting, arms crossed. "Jeez, you're being a baby."

"I'm not!"

"Yes, you are." Thatch poked him on the nose, then looked at the time and sighed. As much as he'd like to stay, he had other stuff he needed to get done. "I've gotta go, squirt. Commander duties and all. See ya later, okay? I'll bring the fruit next time."

Luffy grinned up at the cook. "Okay! Bye Thatchy."

Thatch only grinned before shutting the door, a smile still on his face. Luffy was doing better, that much was obvious, but he could barley walk (he took his first steps for the first time in months just two days ago). The man shook his head. Luffy would get back up, eventually, but for now he just needed to lie down and rest.

He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't notice someone standing in his way until he bumped into them, sending them both back a few feet.

Thatch blinked, looking up and grinned when he recognized the man. "Oh! Teach. Sorry 'bout that. I didn't see you there."

"No," Teach gave Thatch a dark grin, one that the commander had never seen before. "I was looking for you, actually."

"Oh, really? Whatcha need?"

"Nothing," the man replied. "Just saying congratulations on finding that Devil Fruit. They're pretty rare, you know."

"Oh!" Thatch brightened up a bit. "Yeah, I was pretty lucky. Have you seen it yet?"

Teach laughed, but it wasn't a normal laugh. It was dark, almost sinister, nothing like how the man would laugh on a normal day and it was quite honestly scaring him. "Oh yes, Commander Thatch. Believe me, I've seen it."

And then the man lumbered off, leaving Thatch alone once again.


	19. Chapter 19

It was cold that night; lonely and kind of scary. The infirmary was quiet; so quiet that he could hear the sounds of the waves crashing against the massive hull. Luffy didn't know what time it was, nor did he really care. All he knew was that it was dark and he didn't like it.

The shadows danced on the walls like there was some hidden tune that he couldn't hear. He shrunk back into his pristine white bed, pulling the covers just a bit higher to cover his nose. Luffy shuddered; closing his eyes and tried to calm the queasy feeling in his gut.

It felt like it did back when he was just a little kid when someone decided to attack Oyaji's ship. The only difference was there were no shouts, no explosions, no war cries and no one to comfort him. No Ace. No Marco. No one.

He was alone.

Just like all those years ago, back when he could barely form a coherent thought, living alone on an island full of animals that could eat him with barely any effort.

For a while, Luffy contemplated on going to wake up Ace, but quickly decided not to because his older brother had night watch last night and needed his sleep. Ace had distracted him enough already and he didn't want the grown man worrying about him anymore than he had to. Ace already had to worry about his division, just as Luffy had to worry about his. Anything else at this point would just be unreasonable and a burden.

He sighed, watching as his breath comes out as a white mist. It really was cold tonight; if they were lucky, then, maybe they'd end up with some snow soon. Luffy opens his eyes and smiled because even if it wasn't much comfort, it was all that he had.

He starts to close his eyes again, his fatigue finally starting to catch up with him. He's almost asleep when he hears a quiet thump and a hiss of pain and, suddenly, he's sitting straight up in his bed, staring at the door. There's someone outside muttering under their breath, but Luffy couldn't understand them nor could he recognize the voice. The person's footsteps then started up again, this time away from his door and Luffy let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding.

There was something off, though Luffy couldn't quiet place it. There was only one person on watch tonight; Izo, but the man was very adamant about staying on his post and not moving, so there was almost no way it could be him. It wasn't like the infirmary was anywhere near the kitchen either, so who would go out of their way to come all the way over here?

The boy drew back his covers, throwing his legs carefully over the side of the edge of the bed. He's tried to be as careful as possible so he wouldn't aggravate his already healing wounds. He put one foot down; hissing when he finds out the floor is colder than he originally thought, but pushed the discomfort out of his mind and walked to the door.

It was slow, partially because he was still getting used to walking and partly because he was already sore from Physical Therapy that morning. It frustrated him to no end how helpless he was. If the ship was attacked again, he wouldn't even be able to run.

Luffy paused, hand hovering on the handle before pushing it open and poking his head out to check the hallway. He tried to keep the relief from his features when he saw no one was there.

He heard talking a bit further down the hallway; a light from the room is illuminating the otherwise dark and dreary place. Luffy's stomach started to drop, but he ignored in in favor of quickening his pace, leaning heavily against the wall.

The light is coming from Thatch's room, though why anyone would be up at this ungodly hour is a bit strange. The whispering gets louder, coming from inside the room. The commander snuck up, seeing the door cracked just a bit and peaked his head in.

There were two people in there; one large and covered in black clothing and the other was Thatch, his hand reaching for a sword that was just a little out of his grasp. They're talking about something but Luffy couldn't tell what they were saying.

"Commander Thatch, this is the only time I will ask again." Luffy stopped, quickly recognizing the voice—Teach. He tried to get a better view of the two, but couldn't move without alerting both of the men in the room.

"You have some nerve," Thatch's voice is colder than ice. "Threatening a commander? I thought you had more respect, Teach."

Luffy held in a shiver. He'd never heard Thatch that serious, not even when they're attacked or someone is hurt. He has absolutely no idea what was going on, but he knew it was about to get ugly really fast. Luffy tensed up, seeing the large figure—Teach—moving faster than Luffy had ever seen, grabbing Thatch's sword from his hands in a swift movement and pointing it at the commander. Thatch growled, eyes narrowed.

Luffy had to hold in a cry of outrage, knowing that it would only get them both killed. He had to go tell someone fast because he was in no shape to fight, let alone battle someone who could easily have the strength of a commander. He's about to run back and tell Izo, but soon stopped as he watched what happened next.

Teach sighed like he'd expected the outcome. "And here I thought you had some common sense, Commander Thatch. What a shame."

"The hell—"

There was a cry of pain and Luffy's eyes widened in terror. Teach lunged to stab Thatch, but the seasoned commander was too quick and the fat man only ended up slicing his shoulder. Teach snarled like a wild animal, jumping at Thatch and pinning him to the ground. Thatch struggled for a second but couldn't escape the hold in time for Teach to raise the sword, flying down towards Thatch's exposed back—

"DON'T!" Luffy couldn't take it anymore, throwing the door open and racing towards Thatch—

But it was too late.

The sword entered his back, and Thatch let out a cry of pain before going completely still. Luffy managed to lunge at Teach and throw him off, but knew that it had done no good. The man simply grabbed him by the neck and threw him on the ground next to Thatch. Luffy bit his tongue to keep from crying out as his old injuries protested violently.

Luffy glanced towards Thatch at his side, swallowing the bile in his throat as the blood started to pool around the man's body. "You—"

A sword is pointed at his neck and Luffy didn't have time to finish his sentence.

"Ah," Teach sounded only mildly surprised. "You weren't supposed to hear that, little Luffy. You should've been asleep."

Luffy's eyes narrow and he draws his lips into a snarl. He spat at the man's feet, blood dripping down the side of his face. "Traitor."

"I should kill you." Teach said, nonchalantly, like this wasn't the first time he's thought of that. "It would make things easier, but I'm not going to."

The sword is pushed further into his neck, enough to draw blood. "I have what I need so I will take my leave now. I don't want to be caught in the chaos when everyone else finds you. I can imagine that you won't be in very good shape by the end of this."

"Bastard!" Luffy snarled as loud as he could, hoping that someone might hear him. He goes to attack Teach to buy some time, but the sword is only pushed harder against his throat.

"Don't move, brat." Teach said calmly, though his eyes are narrowed and before Luffy can even react, the sword is raised and slicing his chest. Luffy can't even hold in the scream as pain assaulted his senses and he arches his back before thumping back to the ground, panting harshly.

"Good boy," it's like this is a fucking game to him. "Now, you're going to stay right there while I make my escape, alright?"

The sword is raised again and this time it's his legs that are attacked. A sword right through his foot. He bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. He knew the bastard did that so he couldn't run and tell everyone. It made him sick.

His senses were fading and he knew that he doesn't have much time before he's unconscious—or worse. He gasped, his vision is fuzzy but he can just make out the figure of Teach walking out the door, a little box in his hand.

He tried to control his breathing but he knew it wasn't working. He can't move any of his body and his chest and feet feel like they're on fire.

"Help!" he cried out, hoping someone could hear him. He can't tell how loud his voice is or if he's even talking at all. "Someone help us!"

His throat burned and he knew that he couldn't say anymore. His sight was almost completely gone and his hearing was fuzzy, but he could have sworn that he heard footsteps running down the halls and someone calling his name before everything faded away.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this is such an awful ending oohhoho my goooddd   
> but consider: i actually ended the story, so
> 
> also its like 73,000+ words im not touching this thing again bye

Ace makes an effort not to look at the bloodstain on the deck. He leans against the rail, ignoring everyone that passes by him. He doesn't acknowledge those that try to approach him. Doesn't look at them. Doesn't speak.

His hands grip the rail tight, stubbornly looking out at the ocean. The lights from deck reflect and dance along the tops of the waves. He shivers, closing his eyes.

_Betrayal._

The words leave a bitter taste in his mouth. Ace thought that his nakama were his family. They had eaten together, the had drank together, they had fought together, they had _lived_ together.

Apparently Marshal D. Teach had other ideas.

Ace forces his eyes open, letting out a shaky breath of air. This past year had been rough on them all, from Akaniu's attack to Luffy's coma. Ace had thought that it couldn't get any worse.

He was wrong. He was so, _so_ wrong.

"We're all worried, you know." Marco's voice comes from behind him. Ace doesn't even turn around. "Thatch isn't dead yet. Luffy will be fine."

" _God_ , Marco," Ace chokes out. He doesn't know what to say. How can he convey so many emotions into simple words? He could he spit out all of his worries and fears? His words were failing him—he doesn't trust himself not to fuck everything up and make it worse.

A comforting hand is placed on his shoulder. Ace tenses, lowering his head. He doesn't want pity. He just wants his family to be okay.

"They're strong," Marco says, his voice low and gentle.

"I know," Ace says because he _does._ His brothers were the strongest out there.

A million thoughts were swirling around his head. He glances up at Marco only to see familiar blue eyes staring down at him. "Have a little faith, Ace."

Ace is going to respond—he really is—but a small white fleck captures his attention. He looks away from Marco and back out to the sea, captivated and horrified at the same time.

"Oh," Marco says. "It's snowing."

Snow.

Thatch's voice echoes in his head.

_If I die, I want to die when it's snowing._

_Fuck_ , Ace thinks.

* * *

Luffy wakes up to a major headache and a roomful of commanders mingling by his bed. He blinks—once, twice—trying to process what exactly was going on. He tries to sit up, but pain races up his back and forces him back in to the bed.

_The infirmary_ , his mind provides. He was in an infirmary bed.

The other commanders take notice of his movement and cry out happily as they swarm him. Questions are shot out faster than he can process and it doesn't stop until Ace weasels his way through the crowd and pushes them back. "Hey! Let him breathe!"

"Luffy!" Izo calls. "Thank god. We were so _worried._ After we found you and Thatch—" Izo's voice catches in his throat and the other commanders look down.

_Thatch._

Luffy's eyes widen. The events of _that_ night come rushing back to him. Teach, the devil fruit, Thatch…

Just _what_ had happened?

"Thatch…" Luffy's voice cracks at the end. He feels _horrible._ Like he'd been fed to a seaking and thrown back up (which was _not fair_ because _he_ was the one supposed to be eating the sea king).

Marco pushes through the crowd, eyes soft. He places a hand on Luffy's shoulder. "Thatch," He pauses and Luffy holds his breath. "Thatch is alive."

And just like that, Luffy could breath again.

"He's hurting," Marco continues. "Teach did a number on him, but he should be fine. He woke up a little while ago. Was asking about you the entire time."

"You two scared us!" Haruta says, grinning enthusiastically.

Jozu huffs and rolls his eyes. A few of the other commanders chime in with their agreement.

"Everyone…" Luffy says, a wide grin coming to his face. His words are barely louder than a whisper. "Thank you."

* * *

Things were smooth after that (well, as smooth as a pirate's life can get). Luffy was now nineteen—almost twenty!—years old and Ace could not be prouder. He could tell Marco and Thatch were as well (Thatch even cried as they sung happy birthday for his nineteenth's birthday party).

His little brother had grown.

And for once, Ace wasn't worried for the future. They'd face it head on, just like always. They were a family after all!

* * *

The island was decimated. Completely and utterly destroyed. Shanks knows this—he had caused part the destruction after all—and even as yet another tree falls in the wake of the fight, Shanks could not be any prouder.

Luffy had defeated him.

Their fight had gone on for _forever._ The others had grown tired of watching after a while and had returned to their respective ships. Shanks himself was _exhausted._ His entire body ached and he was struggling to keep his eyes open.

He finds himself on his knees, staring at the ground. There's a grin on his face as he clutches his bleeding stomach. Anchor fought well. Not just _well_ but amazing. Amazing enough to beat a Yonko.

For a second, Shanks sees an image of a small boy with a bandage under his eyes proudly declaring, _I will defeat you!_

Defeat him, he had.

The click-clack of sandals startles the red-haired man out of his stupor. He glances up, only to see straw flip flops just mere inches away from his face. Shanks wheezes out a laugh. "You are full of surprises, aren't you Luffy?"

The boy laughs, but doesn't reply.

Shanks shakes his head fondly (or as much as he can; everything _hurts)._ "What do you fight for, Luffy?"

There is absolutely no hesitation. "I fight for my family."

Shanks laughs again. He can feel his body shutting down. The edges of his vision were blurring. His hands shoot out and use the ground to steady himself. "Good, good. I fight for mine as well."

Luffy doesn't respond to this either and for a while, there is silence. Until Shanks dimly makes out the shuffling of Luffy's feet and suddenly he feels a familiar weight on his head.

Oh. _Oh._

_I will defeat you one day, Shanks!_

"You said to return this to you when I defeated you," there is pride in Luffy's voice. "Well, you've been defeated."

Shanks laughs some more. He couldn't stop his grin if he tried. "So I have."

Silence is there once again. Only Shanks' wheezing breath could be heard. He hears Luffy move around again and cracks open his eyes (when had he closed them?), only to see Luffy walking away.

Back towards his home. Back towards his family.

"Shanks!" Luffy suddenly calls out, turning and giving him the widest grin imaginable. "Thank you."

"Anytime, Anchor." Shanks whispers.

And later, when Luffy turns up without a straw hat on his head, no one is surprised.

* * *

"Robin!" The call echoes around her and Robin stops because she _knows_ that voice. She's barley given any warning before a body is slammed into hers and both are sent tumbling to the ground. The figure that had smashed into her wash laughing and for some reason—some weird, unknown reason—Robin didn't feel threated by the voice.

She felt at ease.

The body shifts and suddenly there is a face above hers (bright, _bright_ ) with a smile that is _so_ familiar—

"I've found you!"

Luffy grins at her like she's the best thing that's ever happened to him. Robin stops, because out of all the things she expected, this was _not_ on the list. When she doesn't respond the boy (man? Commander?) pouts and tilts his head to the side. "Don't tell me you forgot our promise!"

Her brain starts to work again and Robin can only laugh. Never before had relief been so prominent in her system. Never before had she felt this kind of _joy._

Luffy had remembered their promise.

"Of course not," She tells him. "How could I forget?"

"I found you!" The commander repeats happily. Proudly. "You're can join my family now!"

"I can," Robin answers. Luffy rushes to get off of her, offering her a hand. Together, they get back on their feet and Robin _smiles._

"You're my nakama, Robin!" He tells her brightly. "My family!"

"Nakama…" Robin repeats under her breath. She repeats the word in her head even more.

_Nakama, nakama, nakama._

_Family._

Without thinking, she throws her arms around and hugs Luffy so tight that she's afraid she might hurt him. Tears start to slip out of her eyes because after so many long years—so many in spent in pain—she finally has a _home._

She finally has a family.

So she _smiles._ She smiles and smiles and smiles. She can't stop. This was her home now. This was her family. "Thank you for finding me."

* * *

The bond that links a true family is not always one of blood.

Luffy's family had grown in the past few years—Chopper, Zoro, Sanji, Robin, Nami, Brook, Franky, and Usspo. All with different dreams of their own, but fates that intertwined. A family.

His family.

The Whitebeard Pirates were his home, his nakama. He knows this better than anyone. No matter what he was feeling, no matter where he was, he knows he'll always have their support and love.

_And that,_ Luffy thinks, _is the best feeling in the world. Better than the feeling of eating a delicious meal._

And sure, not everything is perfect. There are still enemies, Garp still shows up at annoying times, Oyaji still isn't Pirate King, but they're working on it. Every day they get closer and closer. Every day, the future seems brighter.

As long as Luffy has his family by his side, he'll fight forever.


End file.
